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NMCB 3 Seabees Lend Expertise to a SOF Team in Iraq

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS080507-06
Release Date: 5/7/2008 2:01:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Carmichael Yepez, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 3 Public Affairs

RAMADI, Iraq (NNS) -- A team of Seabees assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 3 provided their expertise to help build a wash rack for a Special Operations Force (SOF) unit in Iraq on May 1.

"It's just Navy helping Navy," said a SOF unit member. "We have a few Seabees on our camp, but not with all the expertise that the NMCB 3 guys bring."

The Seabees from NMCB 3's Delta Company placed a concrete pad for use as a wash rack to clean their vehicles which need constant cleaning due to the extreme weather conditions in Iraq.

"This is going to help us a great deal, especially during the rainy season," said a SOF unit representative. "We need to work on our vehicles and conduct minor maintenance, so the mud needs to be constantly washed off."

When a second concrete truck arrived, a sand storm trailed behind it-which created some extra work as they had to constantly add water to the keep the surface from drying up as they completed the work.

The Seabees worked side by side with civilian Turkish workers and even though a language barrier existed, they both understood concrete well.

The majority of Seabees working on the project were junior troops on their first concrete placement since they joined the Navy. Chief Builder (SCW) Jim Dolan, Operations Chief for NMCB 3's Delta Company, explained that the concrete project provided some hands on experience for their junior troops.

"You can't learn concrete from the books," said Dolan. "These projects provide a perfect learning environment for our junior Seabees."

Builder Constructionman Anna Barfknecht, who has been in the Navy for less than a year, noted this was her first time doing some real construction work since she left Builder "A" school.

"I got my boots really dirty and full of concrete," said Barfknecht, whose eyebrows and hair were covered with shades of dust from the sand storm that hovered around her. "I learned that it takes a lot of people to place a concrete slab and it involves a lot of tedious finish work."

NMCB 3 Seabees completed the wash rack project in two days. Ultimately, the wash rack will help enhance the operational capabilities of the SOF unit.

Seabees from NMCB 3 are providing general engineering support to Multi-National Forces-West in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

For more information on the Seabees of NMCB 3 logon to www.seabee.navy.mil.

For more news from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 3, visit www.navy.mil/local/nmcb3/.