Army Reserve engineers end Iraq tour

By Cpt. Tony DeissOctober 19, 2010

Army Reserve engineers end Iraq tour supporting troops in Afghanistan

CAMP PHOENIX, Afghanistan - Soldiers deploying to support two wars in

one year doesn't happen often, but Soldiers of the 367th Engineer

Battalion and 492nd Engineer Company, both of the U.S. Army Reserve,

have supported Soldiers in Iraq and Kuwait, and are now supporting

servicemembers in Afghanistan.

Initially mobilized to help sustain construction projects for the

drawdown of U.S. forces in Iraq, these vertical engineers have taken on

a new mission to finish construction projects in Afghanistan to provide

more permanent-living space for troops within the Kabul Base Cluster

(KBC) in the capital region.

"The biggest reason this mission is important is that housing is a very

limited commodity within the KBC and there are a lot of troops that need

to move in to accomplish missions; there just isn't the permanent

housing available right now," said Capt. Joel Welter, 367th deputy of

operations.

"We want to move people into these buildings and out of tents before

winter sets in."