Repairing flood damaged lanes mutually beneficial to Soldiers, Jackson

Years after the 1,000-year flood Fort Jackson continues to fix its infrastructure a portion at a time. Manpower shortages caused the installation's Directorate of Public Works to call in outside help to fix post infrastructure.

The same 92nd Engineer Battalion, originally brought in to help fix Semmes Dam, but instead created a new borrow pit and fixed some roads last year, arrived on Fort Jackson last week to begin repairing roads in a process deemed mutually beneficial to the Soldiers and the installation.

A squad of Soldiers from the 526th Engineer Construction Company out of Fort Stewart, Georgia, armed with bulldozers is currently leveling out a road near the Chaplain School's Forward Operating Base and removing top soil from a borrow pit. A borrow pit is a place where pristine soil can be taken and moved elsewhere to shore up roads and other infrastructures.

The troop's squad leader said working on Fort Jackson gives the Soldiers the opportunity to perfect their mission essential tasks, while overseeing the revitalization of the dirt road.

"Our job is to expand the quarry so we can expand to get more clay as well as improve the fire breaks," said Staff Sgt. Austin Gonzales. "We actually don't get to do this as much as we'd like to … this is actually a real aspect (of training) where we can actually get hands on high quality work. We can actually provide quality work to DPW."

While the Soldiers get training, Fort Jackson gets help where it no longer can help itself due to manpower shortages.

The help is deemed "critically important" as DPW doesn't have the internal manning at this time. "We can't do any major road repairs anymore," said John Maitland, head of Fort Jackson Forestry Department.

Plus, the Army is "getting road work done for the cost of fuel," he added.

The more than 20 Soldiers, including equipment operators and supporting personnel, are using heavy equipment to bring in fill from the borrow pit to level the road back up.

In portions of the road nearly three feet of soil was washed away making it virtually impassable except for the heartiest of vehicles. At some points along the road soil is so soft it is difficult to walk through. After the engineers built up the road it was nearly compact as asphalt or concrete.

"We are taking the surface material, which is actually a soft sandy material and planing it down to a more firm clay material to build a better foundation for it," said Gonzales, who has been in the Army for seven years. "That way we can build it up so … when fires come in you can actually stop it with material that is not flammable. "

"We haven't had to use (the 92nd) except for after the flood," Maitland said. "We have had so much damage from the flood that we haven't gotten to."

Fort Jackson's vast network of unpaved roads, or firebreaks, crisscrossing the installation were built in the 50s, 60s and 70s every quarter mile to slow down any fires that could break out. Of these, it is estimated that 10 to 20 percent are in need of repair.

Throughout the years the military has used the roads to get to training areas and training sites. This usage necessitates restoration needs, Maitland said.

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