82nd Paratroopers Pull Together to Improve FOB in Afghanistan
DVIDS report by Sgt. Mike MacLeod for 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division Public Affairs
Photos
FORWARD OPERATING BASE ARIAN, Afghanistan – The name can be deceiving. Here in Afghanistan, Arian refers to a hardy people, the Ariani, who lived in the vicinity of Nevada-like Ghazni province and much of central Asia in pre-Islamic times.
The mud, isolation and arid heat of Forward Operating Base Arian are now receding for the American paratroopers stationed here thanks to their own hard work as they work and live on this 20-acre post formerly occupied by Polish forces.
Deployed to insurgent-troubled rural Ghazni province between Afghanistan’s great cities, these paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team hope to make a difference in the security situation. In the meantime, they are pulling together to make the most of their humble post.
The FOB “mayor” is Capt. Steve Kim, a company commander with 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, who is on his third deployment.
According to Kim, paratroopers of three battalions have pooled labor and resources with the base life support contractor, Flour, engineers with the Louisiana National Guard, and the Army Materials Command to achieve substantial quality-of-life improvements for the FOB’s denizens.
They include doubling the size of the dining facility, building and graveling a new secure landing zone for the heavy helicopter traffic, expanding the fuel storage capacity and pumping facility, establishing a new supply yard and erecting new vehicle maintenance bays, erecting dozens of additional living quarters and associated showers and latrines, and augmenting the base laundry facilities.
“We’ve been working long days – about 15 hours – sometimes to three in the morning,” said Cpl. Michael Hamilton, a water treatment specialist with Company A, 307th Brigade Support Battalion.
Hamilton “borrowed” two fuelers off the flight line to help fill water bladders for new showers and laundry facilities. Everyone does some kind of double duty, he said.
Thousands of sandbags stacked around living quarters and workspaces, the establishment of new entry control points to the outside world, the emplacement of artillery and mortars, and other security measures have made the base more secure against attack, said Kim.
One of the buildings has been modified to house a dentist, physical therapist, environmental health specialist, and a behavioral health professional.
“It’s been amazing,” said Maj. Murray Reefer, the dentist with 1/82. “All of the battalions here contributed to building this place. They did a great job.”
Kim said there are more improvements planned, including a water production facility and a new Morale, Welfare and Recreation center with a gym and dozens of computers and phones for soldiers to contact home.
“We’ve come a long way since our first troops got here in February,” said Kim.
Tip Mullins
11:04 pm on Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Lets hope they are all safe and return home soon. Gob Bless them all
Get It Straight
9:46 am on Tuesday, May 8, 2012
..or you could actually get the story correct and give praise to the Guard unit from Louisiana. Arriving in late Nov, they built Arian to what it is today. The 82nd is simply enjoying the fruits of a 4 month labor from those guys.
get it right
10:25 am on Tuesday, May 8, 2012
pretty sure there wasnt any 82nd there when an entire unit was sleeping in two builds that were menat for about fifty people combined. then when we were in tents freezing because there werent enough good generators to keep a heater running all night. You need to get your facts right and give credit were credit is due
I'm shocked!
3:53 am on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
1022nd En. Co. out of Louisiana built up Arian. Three long, freezing cold, months of hard labor...
J.R.
3:54 am on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Wow....so " a national guard unit from Louisiana" HELPED build up Arian? From my understanding, and i understand quite well, the national guard unit from Louisiana are the people who did build up COP Arian. 82nd came a very long 3 months later after the water was no longer cold, infested, and rare. Also after the food became regular and the snow was almost off the ground. Give credit where credit is due...the 1022nd En. Co deserves all the credit. This is the most digusting article that i have read in a very long time.
Jim
8:29 am on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
This just shows how Active duty troops treat guard units, even though the engineers from the guard unit from Louisiana and South Dakota were on ground first with support from the Polish military who were in charge of "COP" Arian at the time, so make sure you do research before you post bullshit that the 82nd claims they've done and haven't If they where here when the 1022nd en co were bulding it up to what it is now maybe the 82nd would have a little more respect for those guys who where here before them. The 82nd shoud've been their when thier was no running water and no hot showers in the middle of winter and no laundry what so ever. But they werent it was just the 1022nd and the polish. Thats why Engineers lead the way.
KW
12:00 pm on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
I know, technically, that the 1022nd consists of both engineering units... but don't forget, while you're yelling back about who deserves what credit, to mention that BOTH the Guard units from Louisiana AND South Dakota worked their a***s off!!
Gotta love how Guard does double the work, but gets half (to none) the credit...
God bless the 842nd AND the 1022nd for all their hard work and dedication to their mission and their country!!!
43rd MP veteran
10:06 pm on Tuesday, May 15, 2012
AMEN!! 842nd from South Dakota had a hand in that, and not a small one!!!!!!
Jessica Caruthers
7:04 pm on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
http://www.bhpioneer.com/local_news/article_10145ed8-8d5c-11e1-84a6-001a4bcf887a.html
For those wondering what the 842nd and the 1022nd have been doing there for the last three months... God bless all of our troops. I just wish they would give credit where credit is due....
Life26
11:18 am on Monday, May 21, 2012
Get it straight
My husband is in the 82nd and they are building a tone of shit themselves so get your facts straight... You ppl don't know what's going on there my husband and the rest of those guys are building a lot of stuff and you bash our active duty soldiers grow up
Knowyourstuff
11:14 pm on Sunday, June 3, 2012
well it is really easy to get the facts staight because I am here. The 1022 and 842nd showed up Novemeber built 3 expansions with some help from a NG unit out of IllIoinis. They had no laundry hot water and a dining facility that we were told to eat at our own risk at. im sure they apriciate the 82nd comming in because that was when they got all the amentities they have now. The 82nd had no part in any major build in arian. They set up some hescos that the sd and LA engineers had to fill and re set up so good for them i guess. They also do secuirty which they appriciate. But as far as the build goes they havent done anything. The 1022nd and 842nd have worked there ass off and got some shit done they were here to greet the 82nd when they got into country and will still behere to wave goodbye as they leave. So please give credit were credit is due.
South Dakota Proud
9:35 pm on Saturday, June 23, 2012
Thank you Knowyourstuff! It is greatly appreciated to know that our soldiers aren't forgotten in that mix. The 1022 and the 842nd have done a lot of that work. We just want people to know that it was a collaboration not just one unit.
South Dakota Proud
civillian contractor
9:00 am on Friday, July 6, 2012
From the article above:
"They include doubling the size of the dining facility, building and graveling a new secure landing zone for the heavy helicopter traffic, expanding the fuel storage capacity and pumping facility, establishing a new supply yard and erecting new vehicle maintenance bays, erecting dozens of additional living quarters and associated showers and latrines, and augmenting the base laundry facilities."
1022 did all but the maintenance bays. The Air Force did that and took incoming on the tent when they were building it.
I was at Arian when the 1022 was there and know they did all the work and Fluor hasn't done a dam thing except keep everything off the density list.