NMCB 4 comes home

Photo by MCC Daniel Pearson / NFELC

Members of American Legion Riders, Chapter 48 in Oxnard, greet Seabees returning from an eight-month deployment. The plane arrived at Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu, shortly after 3 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 11.

Photo by MCC Daniel Pearson / NFELC

Loretta Zeller is on hand to greet BUCN Cody Madura as Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 4 returns from an eight-month deployment.

Photo by MCC Daniel Pearson / NFELC

Capt. Jim McHugh, commanding officer, Naval Base Ventura County, greets the Seabees returning home at 3 a.m. after an eight-month deployment.

Photo by MCC Daniel Pearson / NFELC

EO3 (SCW/EXW) Brenton Sweeton is reunited with his mother, Debra Sweeton, as he returns to Ventura County from an eight-month deployment.

Photo by MCC Daniel Pearson / NFELC

Seabees look for their family members after disembarking their plane.

More than 300 Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 4 returned to Naval Base Ventura County in the wee morning hours of Saturday, Feb. 11, after an eight-month deployment to Afghanistan.

The remaining 300 are due back this month.

Cmdr. La Tanya Simms led the battalion forward in June, arriving at Bastion Airfield in southern Afghanistan. Within days of arrival, construction teams were distributed throughout Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

“Deployment, especially an eight-month contingency deployment, puts the preparation, training, families, confidence and leadership to the test, and we’ve succeeded,” Simms said. “This has been an amazing eight months because of the diversity of work, how much we were spread out, and how much we relied on small teams with good leaders to operate independently.”

NMCB 4 led the II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) freedom of movement initiative by constructing 11 high-priority roads totaling 50 kilometers, despite harassing enemy activity, and displayed tenacity that has become synonymous with the Naval Construction Force.

NMCB 4 embedded more than 200 Seabees with Special Operations Forces (SOF) operating throughout the country. The Seabees built infrastructure and provided camp maintenance at remote outposts supporting “clear, hold, and build” and village stability operations in rural areas of Afghanistan. The teams deployed to every regional command in Afghanistan, constructing more than 150 Southwest Asia Huts for a variety of uses and greatly improving the quality of life for SOF.

In early December 2011 NMCB 4 completed construction of a low water crossing in the Musa Qal’eh District for Regional Command Southwest Commanding General’s number one engineer priority. At completion, 1,000 crane lifts and 15,000 eight-inch welds were performed to erect two 60-meter crossing structures. The Seabees’ “Can Do!” spirit was on full display as the crew endured long hours operating outside friendly lines and wading through two feet of water in the riverbed to complete the project ahead of schedule. The completion had immediate positive effects, providing residents year-round access to the District Center and bazaar.

“It was a really good feeling hearing ‘manana,’ or ‘thank you,’ from the people as they drove or walked by us while we were working,” said Steelworker Constructionman James McMahan.

In an effort to improve local construction practices and prepare the Afghan people for more responsibilities in anticipation of the Coalition Forces drawdown, NMCB 4 deployed a team of six Seabees to provide construction quality assurance and training to both Marine civil affairs teams and local contractors. The team inspected electrical grids, playgrounds, schools, canals, clinics and bridges — a total of 100 projects valued at $40 million.

“Working with the other services and teaching Afghans proper construction methods was an incredible experience!” said Construction Electrician 1st Class Ryan Nichols.

In a model display of efficiency, the NMCB 4 Water Well Team completed four deep-water wells at remote combat outposts in southern Afghanistan. The completed wells allowed the bases to become more self-sufficient and, on average, saved taxpayers $490,000 in bottled water costs per location.

“I could not be more proud of every Seabee in this battalion for their hard work, creativity, flexibility and ability to simply ‘get ‘er done!’” Simms said.

NMCB 4 is being relieved by NMCB 11 in Afghanistan.