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FALLUJAH, Iraq (NNS) -- If Wedge Donovan’s Seabee battalion had intelligence gathering specialists during the climatic battle at the end of the 1944 movie, “The Fighting Seabees,” perhaps his combat construction team would have been better prepared for the unexpected second enemy column that eventually forced him to heroically ram his bulldozer into a petroleum storage tank. While he destroyed the enemy, it cost John Wayne’s tough, no-nonsense character his life. The idea may have come too late to save the fictional World War II era Donovan, but a new program that incorporates intelligence specialists into Seabee units deploying to...

  Seabees Help Marines Spearhead Effort Teamwork builds combat outposts in Amariyah-Ferris Region. By Cpl. Wayne Edmiston 2nd Marine Logistics Group AMARIYAH-FERRIS REGION, Iraq, May 1, 2007 — The 30th Naval Construction Regiment conducted a mission supporting the effort to drive insurgents out of the Amariyah-Ferris area with the construction of combat outposts here. Eighth Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward), spearheaded the operation with the helping hand of Seabees attached to them by the regiment. These Seabees, a collaboration of sailors from various naval mobile construction battalions, joined the Marines in the project, which included the...

U.S. Navy Seabee Jeremy Edwards of Corpus Christi, Texas, saws a two-by-four for a modular protected billeting facility in support of a Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 28 project in the Al Anbar province of Iraq, April 10, 2007. U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Cmdr. Christa Ford Seabees Build Modular Protected Billeting for Warfighters Hardened roofs offer better protection from mortar impacts. By Lt. Cmdr. Christa Ford Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 28 Public Affairs AL ASAD, Iraq, April 18, 2007 — The word of the day for Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 28 is "prefabrication," and they're putting their words into...

65th Birthday of the Seabees!

'SeaBees' Repair Runway at Logistics 'Hub' Navy and Marine engineers focus on repairing vital runway By Lance Cpl. Ben Eberle 1st Marine Logistics Group CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq, Dec. 11, 2006 -- Camp Taqaddum is considered the logistics "hub" of Iraq due to its existing infrastructure and proximity to major supply routes, but the base's single runway has presented somewhat of a logistical challenge. Navy construction workers, or "SeaBees," and Marine combat engineers have responded by repairing 10 miles of concrete on Camp Taqaddum's flight line. They plan to have both base runways operational by Feb. 1, 2007. "It's the...

CAMP FALLUJAH — The Army Corps of Engineers was recently augmented by some senior enlisted Navy members who volunteered to help rebuild cities within the Al-Anbar province in Western Iraq. Chief Aviation Boatswain’s Mate Handler Michael Yule has now found himself playing a vital role in the rebuilding of the provincial cities of Al-Asaad, Ramadiand and Fallujah. “Right now we’re rebuilding more than 50 new houses in Fallujah,” said Yule, a native of Pittsburgh. “We’re also repairing roads and coordinating the expansion of office and living spaces on camp and building billboards that promote the Iraqi army and police.” The...

WASHINGTON, July 21, 2006 – Air Force C-17 Globemaster III crews assigned to the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron operating in Southwest Asia have added another mission to their resume, providing humanitarian civil assistance to the effort to evacuate Americans from Lebanon. Airlift operations have responded quickly to the urgent needs in the Middle East, supporting U.S. citizens evacuating from Lebanon to Cyprus, U.S. Central Command Air Forces officials said. The 816th EAS is flying water and meals, as well as essential personnel and equipment, to Royal Air Force Base Akrotiri on the island of Cyprus. In the first four...

PORT HUENEME, Calif. -- A Southern California port was closed off Monday afternoon while authorities investigated a possible terrorist threat on a cargo ship, a port official said. A dock worker at the Port of Hueneme in Ventura County discovered a possible threat written in the cargo hold of a ship carrying bananas from Guatemala, said Will Berg, the port's marketing director. Berg said the message, scrawled in marker on a metal pillar in the ship, read: "This nitro is for you Mr. George W. Bush and your Jewish cronies." Federal authorities, including the FBI, and local officials were investigating,...

AL ANBAR, Iraq -- Seabees and soldiers of the 9th Naval Construction Regiment (9th NCR) completed major projects that will directly aid Iraqi Security Forces in their efforts to reinforce security and maintain stability in the area. The goal was to create several security posts in Al Anbar Province. These posts would be manned entirely by the Iraqi Army and would help them to maintain law and order. Constructing these posts would be risky. Prolonged construction periods in this area might endanger construction workers. Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 40 (NMCB 40) decided it would be better to build the base...

GULFPORT, Miss. (NNS) -- Commander, 1st Naval Construction Division Rear Adm. Robert L. Phillips presented five Seabees, currently serving with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 133, with the Purple Heart medal here May 8. Steelworker 2nd Class Jody Allen, Construction Electrician 2nd Class Sean Sullivan, Steelworker 3rd Class Christopher Moran, Constructionman Cody Cannon and Constructionman Richard Fisher received the Purple Heart for injuries sustained while operating in and around Al Asad, Iraq, as part NMCB 133’s recent deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In addition to elected officials, family members and Seabees, guests at the ceremony included more than...

JIJIGA, Ethiopia (NNS) -- Members of the water well drilling unit of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 7 from Gulfport, Miss., are making a difference in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia by drilling wells that will produce clean drinking water for residents, as well as water for crops and livestock. The Seabees have been in the remote region since February drilling into known aquifers, or underground lakes, from which to draw the water. Their goal is to drill as many wells as possible and provide as much water as possible. “For the most part, the people of the region depended...

DIKHIL, Djibouti, April 20, 2006 – In three months, children in this region of Djibouti will be able to further their education, thanks to Seabees and soldiers from Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa. Navy Secretary Donald Winter speaks with Seabees from Gulfport, Miss. at a project in Dikhil, Djibouti, April 20. The Seabees are building a dormitory for junior high students in the village. Photo by Jim Garamone  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The Seabees are building a dormitory for junior high school students in the region. The dormitory will house about 150 boys and girls....

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait (NNS) -- Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 7, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 21 and Amphibious Construction Battalion (ACB) 2 joined together in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, in March to celebrate 64 years of Seabee history. For many, it afforded them the chance to catch up with friends that they had served with before. “It was good to see several different commands in attendance,” said Utilitiesman 1st Class Dennis Maine, of NMCB 7. "When you’re deployed you don’t normally run into personnel from other battalions. I ran into a friend of mine who’s with ACB 2....

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- Sailors from Amphibious Construction Battalion (PHIBCB) 2 Kuwait Det. 1 returned to Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, March 31, after completing a six-and-a-half month deployment in support of the global war on terrorism. “Mobilizing Reservists and blending was a challenge but worked very well,” said PHIBCB 2 Commanding Officer, Capt. Thomas C. Nicholas. The team’s 44 active-duty Sailors and were joined by 13 naval Reservists and supported public works operations for the Army’s Area Support Group (ASG)-Kuwait. “The guys did a great job and got lots of recognition,” said Nicholas. The Seabees worked together with the...

HOMES FOR OUR TROOPS is a non-Profit organization that builds or adapts homes for returning Iraqi veterans who have lost limbs and have special needs physically that require their homes to be remodeled to make the required changes to accomodate the injuries sustained by our warriors in Iraq. I have met these men who run the show there, and highly endorse what they are doing. Recently, due to just a simple choice, 2 Marines who served in Iraq and were seriously wounded are having either a new home built by HOMES FOR OUR TROOPS or a used home will be...

"State of disunion" By Oliver NorthJan 27, 2006 PORT HUENEME, CALIF. -- This sprawling U.S. Navy Construction Center, 60 miles north of Los Angeles, is "home port" for thousands of "Sea-Bees" who are deployed in the global war on terror. These "warriors who build" with a legendary "can-do" spirit are busy repairing schools and hospitals in Iraq, constructing roads and runways in Afghanistan and helping to forge a safer future in places most Americans can't even pronounce. Though most of the men and women in the Naval Mobile Construction Battalions are reservists with good private sector jobs, all I have spoken...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13, 2005 – To military families who've endured a double whammy - Hurricane Katrina's devastation and their loved ones' deployments - first lady Laura Bush's Dec. 12 visit to Gulfport, Miss., represented a welcomed burst of encouragement. Bush visited about 50 children of Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalions 133 and 74 at Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport. NMCB 133 had been slated to leave on a deployment in October, but remained a month longer in Gulfport to provide hurricane relief as part of a "super-Seabee battalion," explained Lt. Cmdr. Kyra Hawn, 22nd Naval Construction Regiment public affairs...

MANAMA, Bahrain (NNS) -- USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) made a brief port stop in Bahrain Oct. 14, where Sailors loaded 13 pieces of heavy equipment bound for Pakistan. The machinery will be used to assist the victims of the worst earthquake in that country’s history. Pearl Harbor, a dock landing ship, usually transports Marines and their combat equipment to areas worldwide. The crew of approximately 425 is on a regularly-scheduled deployment to the North Persian Gulf as part of maritime security operations (MSO), and it received orders to change course in order to load dump trucks, front-end loaders, backhoes,...

HIT, Iraq (Oct. 13, 2005) -- Navy Seabees and Marines from Regimental Combat Team-2 and Soldiers from Task Force 2-114, Mississippi National Guard, repaired a section of bridge here yesterday that was heavily damaged by an insurgent car bomb September 4. The bridge spans the Euphrates River connecting Hit to the suburb of At Turbah on the eastside of the river. Navy Seabees conducted site surveys and assessments on the bridge and decided the best way to get the two cities connected again was by prefabricating a patch for the bridge to repair the damaged section. “They rehearsed the move...

PASS CHRISTIAN, Miss. (NNS) -- U.S. Navy Seabees are building a “tent city” in what’s left of this devastated coastal town to house 1,000 people rendered homeless by the impact of Hurricane Katrina. Some 250 Seabees from detachments across the United States have gathered behind the city’s War Memorial Park, where they’re also constructing a temporary police department headquarters and other municipal offices as government leaders organize plans to rebuild the town they lost. The tent city, a sign of life in a beachfront resort town otherwise in shambles, will have basic necessities from a laundromat to a place to...