LEUVEN, Belgium -- Current and retired EOD Soldiers, Airman, and Seamen from Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, the Netherlands, and the U.S., gather together at the opening ceremony of the Belgian Saint Barbara's Day celebration Dec.8. Soldier...
LEUVEN, Belgium -- Soldiers from 720th Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) take a tour of the Belgian EOD facility during their visit Dec.7. Soldiers from 720th Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal), joined with their Belgian EOD ...
LEUVEN, Belgium -- The Saint Barbara statue, after wreaths were laid during the opening ceremony of the Belgian Saint Barbara's Day celebration Dec. 8. Soldiers from 720th Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal), joined with their Belgian EOD ...
LEUVEN, Belgium -- Explosive ordnance disposal specialists, Staff Sergeant Ryan Essenmacher, and Staff Sergeant Matthew Bagley, assigned to 720th OD CO, observe the tables used for referencing chemical munitions. Soldiers from 720th Ordnance Company ...
PASSCHENDAELE, Belgium -- The chemical ordnance display in the Passchendaele Museum. Soldiers from 720th Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal), joined with their Belgian EOD counterparts, the Dienst voor Opruiming en Vernietiging van Ontplof...
PASSCHENDAELE, Belgium -- Soldiers from 720th Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) and their Belgian EOD counterparts, the Dienst voor Opruiming en Vernietiging van Ontploffingstuigen (DOVO), took Non-Commissioned Officer Professional Development to explosive heights Dec.7-8.
A squad of twelve NCOs from 720th, to include the company 1st Sgt. Benjamin Brinkmeyer, started their day at 0330. They packed into rental vehicles and drove three hours to Leuven, Belgium. When they arrived, the Belgian EOD Sgt. Maj., Tom Messiaen, gave a tour of the facility showing a display of tools, robots, and detectors Belgian EOD uses for improvised explosive device response.
"With a decrease in manpower, more responsibilities are falling on the NCOs. The ability to go east and assist our allies and ensure NATO interoperability truly lies in the hands of the Sergeants and Staff Sergeants," said 1st Sgt. Brinkmeyer. "This trip was designed to give our NCOs the tools and motivation to seek out relationships and train with our allies to ensure a stronger Europe. Belgium was a great place to start."
The second stop on the first day was the DOVO chemical unit. Belgium was one of the most heavily fought-on lands during World War I, and it is still heavily laden with unexploded ordnance, including chemical filled ordnance. Every day the chemical unit gathers and processes approximately fifty rounds of ordnance from the local area. They precisely identify the rounds, some of which are over 100 years old, determine what explosive is in the round, and whether it is safe to store before destruction. The presence of chemicals or high explosives is determined by taking an X-ray of the ordnance, and using a mass spectrometer that can penetrate the case. If EOD identifies these items, then they remove the chemical agents rendering the explosive safe. EOD catalogs, fits bar codes, and enters all ordnance into the computer database for shared knowledge.
The Passchendaele Museum was the last stop on the first day, the site of one of the bloodiest battles during World War I. There were over 200,000 casualties and over 49,000 Soldiers missing after the battle.
"It was a great learning experience. The presentation was well done, and I was able to learn the importance of the DOVO in Belgium," said Sgt. 1st Class Drew Heym, an explosive ordnance disposal specialist, assigned to the 720th Ord. Co. "So much ordnance remains to be cleaned up."
During the second day, Sgt. 1st Class Heym and Sgt. Rory Ehle were invited to attend the Belgian Saint Barbara's Day celebration. Saint Barbara is the patron saint of sudden death, and has been adopted internationally by the EOD community, as well as artillerymen, ammunition workers, and other occupations with risk of sudden explosions.
"The event was a great way for multinational EOD technicians to build lasting friendships, based on the shared struggle of our chosen profession, and to honor those who have fallen to unexploded ordnance," said Heym.
The NCOPD with 720th and DOVO helped strengthen the alliance and sustain a strong Europe by fostering increased operational relationships and shared understandings.
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