> Engineers make remote Afghan base a home from home

Engineers make remote Afghan base a home from home

1 Aug 07

A small team of twenty Army engineers from 26 Engineer Regiment are busy improving living conditions for soldiers working in a desert forward operating base in southern Afghanistan.

Lance Corporal Gemma Cutler works on the inner walls of FOB Camp Dwyer in Afghanistan's Helmand province
[Picture: Sergeant Will Craig]

The strategically located forward operating base (FOB) Dwyer, in Garmsir, Helmand province, provides vital combat and logistical support to troops operating in southern Helmand to drive out the Taliban as part of Task Force Helmand.

Conditions at the base are tough - extreme heat and dust, make it an inhospitable place. Breakfast, lunch and dinner come from 24 hour ration packs. Washing is done under solar showers, rigged up in makeshift cubicles. The wooden toilets are endearingly referred to as 'Thunder boxes'.

FOB Dwyer is at the end of a long and difficult supply chain. Vehicle re-supply convoys can take up to a week to reach the base and return to Camp Bastion, the main base for British forces stationed in Helmand. Urgent supplies and personnel are flown in and out by Royal Air Force Chinook helicopters.

Previously, shelters to provide respite from the unrelenting sun were made from old parachutes. Tables and chairs have been crafted from disused pallets and kitchens have been built from empty ammunition tins, one even includes an improvised clay oven which is used to bake bread.

Finishing one wall moving to the next the machine, a mechanical arm, stretches out under the control of the Royal Engineer
[Picture: Sergeant Will Craig]

But now, the Tidworth-based Royal Engineers have been deployed to improve conditions and provide a few home comforts for the soldiers that live and work at Dwyer.

The soldiers from 30 Field Squadron have been working every hour of the hot summer days and are making good progress with the improvement works, which will also enhance the FOB's ability to provide support to operations.

Staff Sergeant Eddie Palmer explained how the improvement works are going:

"We have been here for approximately two months now. In that time we have completed a whole host of tasks including better accommodation units, force protection perimeter walls and sangars."

The biggest morale boost to the troops was the construction of proper flushing toilets. The engineers have also installed a large refrigeration unit to protect food and water from the 45 degree daily temperatures.

When not working, the sappers spend their time relaxing by playing cards, reading and writing home
[Picture: Sergeant Will Craig]

A specialist team has drilled a deep well to guarantee a water source for washing and showers:

"When you complete a job out here you get good job satisfaction. You feel relieved that you've got it done, but you know that tomorrow there will be another one," said Lance Corporal Gemma Cutler.

The soldiers are not only construction engineers, they regularly deploy in their combat engineer role to provide close support to the infantry, whether it be in bridge building, compound breaching or explosive demolitions.

When not working, they spend their time relaxing by playing cards, reading and writing home. Others take the opportunity to grab a few extra minutes of rest.

"My favourite part of the day is definitely getting in my hammock and grabbing a good night's kip," said Sapper James Robert.

Task Force Helmand is part of The International Security Assistance Force, acting under the authority of a UN resolution, at the request of the democratically elected Afghan government and with the support of the people, to ensure the country does not slip back under the control of the Taliban.