• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Indonesian School Project Caps Seabees' CARAT Experience

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS090821-16
Release Date: 8/21/2009 3:07:00 PM

By Lt. Ed Early, Commander, Task Group 73.5 Public Affairs

BEKASI, Indonesia (NNS) -- The dedication and turnover of a new school building and playground for Pusaka Rakyat Primary School in Bekasi, Indonesia, Aug. 14 represented the conclusion of a summer's worth of projects throughout Southeast Asia supporting Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) 2009.

Deployed in support of CARAT since May 2009, the Port Hueneme, Calif.-based Seabees of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 40 have traveled through the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia performing engineering civic action projects (ENCAPs).

For nearly a month, the Seabees of NMCB 40 worked with engineers from the Indonesian Marine Corps to assemble a new school building from the ground up and a new concrete play area, where there had been only a ditch full of mud and water.

"I feel that this project has turned out to be the best of the four we have worked on," said Lt. j.g. Phil Schuler, officer in charge of the NMCB 40 detachment for CARAT. "The need for an ENCAP was the greatest, by far, here in Indonesia, so our work was definitely cut out for us."

The Seabees' mission wasn't just about assembling steel and concrete. It also involved building new working relationships and friendships with military counterparts overseas, as well as communicating with the local residents.

"I've made many friends among our counterparts," said Construction Electrician 2nd Class Katherine Harris of NMCB 40. "We have many differences, both in construction methods and cultures, but learning is what makes the experience so much fun."

The dedication of the school and playground by Rear Adm. Nora Tyson, commander, Logistics Group Western Pacific, marked the official close to the first phase of CARAT Indonesia. CARAT Indonesia began July 20 with the arrival of the Seabees, medical and dental personnel and U.S. Marines attached to Task Group 73.5. Two Navy ships are scheduled to arrive in late August for the second phase of CARAT Indonesia.

"The people here in Pusaka Rakyat have been so welcoming and friendly to us," said Builder 1st Class Brian Cornwell. "Seeing the smiling faces on the children as they say good-bye to us each day as we leave the job site, it makes all the hard work that we are putting in more than worth it."

The new facility at Pusaka Rakyat is virtually identical to multi-use buildings constructed by NMCB 40 at LO-OC National High School in Cebu, Philippines; Seberang Tayor Primary School in Kuantan, Malaysia; and Ban Khao By Si School in Pattaya, Thailand.

"Each phase brought different challenges and opportunities, with no two situations being the same," said Cornwell. "Though we did build a similar school building in each of the four locations, each was unique as the counterparts, materials and general surroundings and situations all differed."

The Seabees' first project for CARAT provided a surprise for the students and staff of LO-OC National High School. Not only did NMCB 40 provide the Cebu-based school with a new building, it also renovated an outdoor stage on the school grounds.

"I was only expecting repairs, but they built a new stage," said Arturo Go, principal of LO-OC National High School.

In Kuantan, NMCB 40 teamed with the Malaysian Army's 91st Royal Construction Regiment on multiple projects around Seberang Tayor Primary School. In addition to the multi-use building, the Seabees and Malaysian engineers created a new reading area and renovated a gazebo, as well as a nearby clinic.

The Seabees received a great deal of help in Pattaya, where the Royal Thai Marine Engineers assembled more than half of Ban Khao By Si School's new special needs center by the time Task Group 73.5 arrived.

Since 1995, the CARAT bilateral exercise series has provided the United States and six Southeast Asian nations – Brunei, the Republic of the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia – the opportunity to exchange knowledge and expand and sharpen maritime security through shared training, equipment and manpower.

For more news from Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training, visit www.navy.mil/local/carat/.