Deployed plumbers keep water flowing

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Brian Davidson
  • 447th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFPN) --  Water. It is one of life’s most basic necessities. Without it, battles have been lost and entire armies have fallen.

It can mean the difference between success and failure -- and even life and death.

The Airmen of the 447th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron utilities team know that getting clean water to the troops and safely disposing of waste water is one of the cornerstones of military operations.

Although it is often back-breaking, filthy, smelly work that goes mostly unnoticed by others, these utilities specialists find their reward in going unnoticed.

“No one flushes a toilet or turns on a shower and jumps for joy,” Senior Airman Steven Wright said. “It’s just something that’s expected, and necessary, to keep the force strong.”

Airman Wright is part of the nine-person team, all deployed from the 18th Civil Engineer Squadron at Kadena Air Base, Japan.

“The first two priorities in establishing deployed operations are getting a runway open and getting water service established,” said Tech. Sgt. Thomas Weis, team leader. “We’re plumbers. We work to keep clean water flowing in and dirty water flowing out -- it’s just that simple.”

Although the concept may be simple, achieving that goal takes a coordinated effort.

The plumbers keep more than 120,000 gallons of water on hand, drawing sample after sample of the supply to ensure it is safe. Every morning, they load their water truck to set out making sure more than 30 water tanks around the base are filled. Trip after trip is required to refill the truck, and then transfer that supply into the tanks, and, the team delivers nearly 30,000 gallons of water every week. Some of those deliveries even put them right in the sights of insurgents, but the plumbers get the job done without fail.

One thing Sergeant Weis said he discovered after taking the reigns of the plumbing crew was that there was an entire section of the base that relied exclusively on the water truck deliveries. This was a situation that he intended to change.

Slowly but surly, his team has been installing more than 5,000 feet of pipe across the base. Once completed, the project will provide clean water directly to a 5,500-gallon holding tank, keeping a constant supply on-hand for more than 20 base facilities.

The job is not without its challenges. Working in the Iraqi sun, the plumbers have to run the pipe across rocky ground and roadways, and under fences to reach the holding tank.

“When we leave here I want everyone to have a steady, reliable and safe supply of water,” Sergeant Weis said. “Without it, people can’t focus on their mission, and that could lead to mission failure.”

Pumping in clean water is only half of the equation. While filling water tanks and running new water lines is hot and dirty work, disposing of waste water can get just plain nasty.

“Sewage is definitely something that people don’t want to think about, but waste from the sinks, showers and latrines has to go somewhere,” Staff Sgt. Sam McCray said. “We have also been improving the waste water system, and the job can get pretty nasty sometimes.”

Recently, the utilities Airmen installed a new lift station and waste water pipe into a more secure part of the base. The lift station moves waste water to a series of central holding tanks, where it can be pumped out and trucked to treatment facilities. Once the new lines were installed, Sergeant McCray removed the old waste lines.

“Pulling out (an) old pipe full of waste water that has been sitting in the Iraqi sun for weeks was pretty much the worst of the projects, but continuing to improve the waste water system is critical to keeping the force healthy,” Sergeant McCray said.

Getting the job done is challenging enough, but in a deployed environment, it takes a lot of innovation and imagination.

“Back home we know what parts we need to complete a project, and we go get those parts,” Sergeant McCray said. “Here, we have to make due with what’s available, and sometimes that means inventing new ways to use the parts we have.”

The utilities Airmen quietly go about their mission -- keeping fresh water flowing in, and waste water flowing out, and they do not care much for being in the lime light.

They credit teamwork and training for their ability to tackle any challenge.

“My people get the job done, no matter what it takes,” Sergeant Weis said. “As long as people don’t have to think about us, we know our mission is successful.”