Homeland Defense and Combat Engineers
Valuable training along the U.S.-Mexico border
by 1stLt Patrick W. Junick
Fom 10 November to 23 December 2005, two task-organized
platoons from 1st Combat Engineer Battalion (1st CEB) were involved
in two engineer missions in support of Joint Task Force-North (JTF-N)
and the U.S. Border Patrol (USBP). The scope of JTF-N’s mission
along the southern borders of Arizona and New Mexico is to support
the USBP’s interdiction of illegal drug traffic and illegal immigration
along the U.S.-Mexico border. Additionally, it is to help secure the
U.S. border during the ongoing global war on terrorism (GWOT). The
two engineer missions were the construction of security lighting and
a vehicular barrier fence along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The first mission was located near Naco, AZ, and the
second was located in Columbus, NM. Due to continuous deployments
in support of the GWOT, this evolution marked the first time in several
years that 1st Marine Division (1st MarDiv) has been able to provide
units to support JTF-N. In fact, during the execution of these missions,
1st CEB had one company (reinforced) in Iraq, one company (reinforced)
conducting Operation IRAQI FREEDOM
predeployment training, and two platoons assigned to/operating in
support of the 13th and 15th Marine Expeditionary Units. Despite this
high operational tempo, 1st CEB examined the feasibility of supporting
this real-world training opportunity and realized the time was right
to take advantage of this opportunity. Marines would have the chance
for technical practice in their respective military occupational specialties
(MOSs) while conducting the missions in an austere environment. Many
of the Marines supporting these missions were getting close to their
end of active service and could not deploy to Iraq, but they had much
to offer prior to their release from active duty.
1st CEB’s two platoons were under the tactical
control of JTF-N. Each was provided the tools and General Services
Administration (GSA) vehicles from JTF-N. All heavy equipment was
contracted through Hertz. The USBP was responsible for providing construction
materials as well as force protection of the units working in support
of their larger mission along the border. The USBP was required to
be on site whenever Marines were on the border to prevent any encounter
between Marines and anyone conducting illegal activity. In addition,
each platoon had “guardian angels” (USBP agents) as a final
precaution.
Billeting was a little different between the two sites. The Marines working in Naco were able to stay in a hotel in Bisbee, AZ, but had to commute about 30 minutes to their jobsite. In Columbus the Marines billeted in a bunkhouse provided by a local farmer at the request of the local USBP station. The bunkhouse was used for this mission as well as other similar missions in the area. These Marines were located roughly 4 miles from the border and the jobsite and 10 miles from the village of Columbus, the nearest town. Chow for both missions was contracted from local restaurants for both breakfast and dinner with meals, ready-to-eat for lunch.
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Mission Planning and Execution
The first phase of the operation was the planning phase. This phase
began with the initial planning conference at the JTF-N headquarters
at Fort Bliss in El Paso, TX. At this conference the platoon commanders
identified equipment requirements and developed the necessary bill
of materials. As part of the mission analysis, the number of Marines
needed for each project was established. With the approval of the
1st CEB and 1st MarDiv, the planning phase concluded with a project
back brief to the Commanding General (CG), JTF-N. At the back brief,
the platoon commanders met with the CG, JTF-N and key staff to explain
what each platoon planned to accomplish.
The second phase of the mission was the actual deployment
of the two platoons. Although the platoons had different start dates,
they each had an advanced echelon (Advon) consisting of four Marines.
These Advons proceeded to JTF-N headquarters to check out their GSA
vehicles and all of the JTF-N supply-issued gear. Following this process
the Advons proceeded to their worksites to receive delivery of their
contracted heavy equipment. Upon delivery, a limited technical inspection
was conducted for equipment serviceability; however, all maintenance
of the equipment was the responsibility of Hertz.
The third phase was employment. During this phase the
platoons were expected to install no less than 1/2 mile of security
lighting in Naco and 1/2 mile of antivehicular fencing in Columbus.
Both units had the same date of completion, 20 December. At completion
of the missions, the fourth and final phase of the missions began.
The fourth phase, redeployment, involved cleaning up each of the jobsites and redeploying the main bodies of both platoons home to Camp Pendleton. The rear parties returned to El Paso to turn in all gear and equipment to JTF-N. By 23 December the rear parties completed their turn-in and returned in time for the holidays.
Mission Summaries
Naco, AZ. The Naco mission, as previously mentioned, focused
on the goal of installing no less than 1/2 mile of security lighting
along the border of Arizona and Mexico in order to provide better
visibility to the USBP. Under the leadership of CWO3 Richard E. Carmichael,
1st CEB utilities officer, and working under the oversight of JTF-N,
30 Marines of various engineer and utility specialties deployed to
Naco on 10 November 2005. Upon arrival the Marines were “chomping
at the bit” to get started.
The project began with the construction of 31 concrete light pole
foundations and 3 transformer pads. This construction equated to pouring
over 90 yards of concrete. Each pole had three light fixtures affixed
to the top. The lights were 1,000-watt metal halide fixtures operated
automatically by photocell switches. After the concrete cured, the
Marines began to excavate 1 mile of trench. The training value for
the heavy equipment operators was accentuated by the fact that all
of the equipment utilized was commercial, most of which they had never
operated before. The trench allowed for the installation of over 10,000
feet of primary and secondary cable. The next step in the project
was the assembly of the light poles and their installation on the
constructed foundations. In total, thirty-one 50-foot light poles
were installed. The final element of the project was to install three
15 kva (kilovolt amperes) transformers and emplace the finishing electrical
connections. Additionally, there was an opportunity for the Marines
to perform a high-voltage splice, something they usually don’t
get a chance to do.
Columbus, NM. The Columbus mission, under my leadership as
a combat engineer and the battalion’s assistant operations officer,
and working under the oversight of JTF-N, deployed 18 Marines on 17
November 2005 to complete no less than 1/2 mile of antivehicular barrier
fence along the U.S.-Mexico border. The fence was constructed with
tubular steel, concrete, and rebar. The components of the fence tied
into each other to make an effective obstacle. The concrete anchored
the posts in the ground to provide strength and permanence, while
the rails, welded to the posts, afforded the posts additional stability.
The end result was a spread-loading of the force of a vehicle hitting
a post—like the effect of hitting four posts instead of one.
The fence was constructed with four posts per 20-foot rail.
The fence posts were approximately 80 inches tall, with 34 inches
placed below ground in concrete. The completed posts were filled with
concrete with a 60-inch piece placed inside. The use/effect of rebar
was to reinforce the posts to withstand being hit by a vehicle. Each
posthole was dug with a 12-inch auger bit and was roughly 36 inches
deep to allow for 2 inches of backfill with dirt before pouring the
concrete. The aboveground portion of each post was 46 inches with
the rails attached at the 36-inch mark. This design put the rails
slightly higher than an average truck bumper. This height was determined
to provide the greatest damage to the engine of the vehicle.
The projected mission completion time frame was 23 days to emplace the antivehicular fence. By D plus 20 the platoon had installed 1,204 posts, 316 linear feet of rail, and over 120 yards of concrete or 1.2 miles of antivehicular fence along the southern border of New Mexico—far surpassing the initial goal.
Vital Takeaways
The Marines and sailors of 1st CEB did an outstanding job, completed
each project days ahead of schedule, and executed each to a higher
level of expertise and professionalism than JTF-N expected. Not only
will each of these projects have a lasting effect on the Nation’s
border security, but also just as important, these missions afforded
exceptional training opportunities for cross-training Marines in the
many aspects of the combat engineer, heavy equipment, and electrician
MOSs. Both missions were excellent representations of what 1st CEB
is capable of doing—despite having a large percentage of the
battalion operationally deployed. The success of these missions clearly
demonstrated how combat engineers consistently do more with less.
Marines pending deployment had one last opportunity to fine-tune their MOS skills/proficiency, and those Marines ending their active service had one last opportunity to utilize their valuable skills for one more critical mission. Perhaps the biggest takeaway of all was the clear reinforcement of the fact that no matter if they are at home or deployed to a faraway land, all Marines are equally vital to the Nation’s GWOT.
>1stLt Junick is currently deployed to Iraq.
