Firefighters: new station, new team

Photo By Staff Sgt. Kelly Carlton | Lt. Eric Robb (left), alternate crew chief, native of Moberly, Mo., shakes the hand of Spc. Mario Garcia, firefighter and native of Mount Airy, N.C., at a deployment ceremony honoring the 562nd Firefighter Detachment team, who is slated to deploy to Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, Romania, Feb. 12, 2014. Robb said he and Garcia, who is part of 94th Engineer Battalion, 4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, have worked together for the last couple of years at the Fort Leonard Wood Fire Station and said that Garcia is good soldier and an even better firefighter. During the handshake, Robb said he told Garcia to be safe and use his happy-go-lucky attitude to keep up everyone’s spirits. MK Air Base recently replaced the former Manas Transit Center in Kyrgyzstan, which is slated to close in July. (Photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Kelly S. Malone)  

FORT LEONARD WOOD, MO, UNITED STATES

02.12.2014

Story by Sgt. Kelly Carlton 

4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade

By U.S. Army Sgt. Kelly S. Malone
4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade Public Affairs

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. – A group of military firefighters from the 562nd Firefighter Detachment is bound for Romania following a farewell ceremony for the team where fellow soldiers and civilian counterparts from Fort Leonard Wood’s Fire Station attended on Feb. 12, 2014.

The Fort Leonard Wood-based 562nd Firefighter Det., part of the 94th Eng. Bn., 4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, has deployed many soldiers in support of operations in Southwest Asia, but this is the first time the unit has deployed any element to Romania.

The 562nd Firefighter Det. is scheduled to serve at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, also dubbed the MK Passenger Transit Center, near Romania’s Black Sea port town of Constanta.

“Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base is now one of the transit points for entry into and exit from Afghanistan, replacing Manas Air Base in October of 2013,” said Maj. Frank Tedeschi, executive officer for the 94th Eng. Bn.

The transit center at Manas, located in Kyrgyzstan, is slated to close in July.

Tedeschi went to describe their mission.

"Firefighters are a small, but important, capability of the Engineer Regiment,” said Tedeschi. “They will be on call for the crash rescue and structural fire fighting mission at MK and ensure our service members are safely transported in and out of theater.”

For many of the 562nd Firefighter Det. soldiers who are deploying to Romania, it’s bound to be an eye-opening experience.

“I’ve only been in the Army for eight months,” said Pvt. James Brotz, native of Howell, Mich., firefighter with 562nd Firefighter Det. “I am ready to get to work and I’m going to a cool country.”

Unit leaders praised the training and preparation for the Romanian mission, citing an Afghanistan deployment in 2011 and the skills learned from working side-by-side with the Fort Leonard Wood fire department since returning.

From the top down, there’s no lack of confidence in the 562nd Firefighter Det.

“The 562nd Firefighter Detachment is going to dominate at MK!” said Lt. Col. Samuel Volkman, commander, 94th Eng. Bn. “Sgt. [Garett] Russ and the team have done a phenomenal job of training up. They’re ready! They’re brave, responsible and on point.”

• Date Taken: 02.12.2014
• Date Posted: 02.18.2014 12:23
• Story ID: 120753
• Location: FORT LEONARD WOOD, MO, US
• Hometown: HOWELL, MI, US
• Hometown: MOUNT AIRY, NC, US
• Hometown: ONTARIO, CA, US
• Hometown: TAMPA, FL, US