Bandits run this joint

Photo By Spc. Richard Vogt | Mayor's cell in action: (from left to right) Staff Sgt. Michael Herrnberger, Pfc. Raemond Montgomery, Sgt. Vincent Recasino, and Spc. Chris Deal make the stuff that make Forward Operating Base Al Mimir work. Here they are at work on a new shelf for the entry control point building. Where did they learn it? I did this stuff in high school, Montgomery said. (Photo by Spc. Richard Vogt, 138th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment).  

SINJAR, IRAQ

03.20.2006

Courtesy Story

345th Public Affairs Detachment

by Spc. Richard Vogt
138th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

SINJAR, Iraq (March 16, 2006) -- Versatility is a good quality in a Soldier these days because when a unit is living in the desert for long stretches at a time and needs to fix a roof, they cannot simply call a carpenter. They have to do the work themselves.

The Soldiers who make up the mayor's cell at Forward Operating Base Al Mimir have the requisite versatility required for survival in Iraq.

"We do it all," said Staff Sgt. Michael Herrnberger, tank commander, 1st Battalion, 37th Armor Regiment affectionately referred to as "The Bandits" and member of the Mayor Cell support platoon. "Sometimes we get requests we can't fill because we have to prioritize, and right now everyone's roof leaks."

The FOB is composed of old buildings that once housed Iraqi Army Soldiers. Many of the windows are boarded up. Electrical wiring snakes along the outside walls. Rebar sprouts out of the walls where ceilings had been torn away.

"Roofs, plumbing, electricalâ?¦anything that's possible, we try to do," Herrnberger said. "The Turkish contractors help out with the electrical work, a potentially hazardous job."

The team had, that morning, built signs for a two-mile jogging loop. The signs were leaned against the wall, waiting to be deployed around the FOB.

"It is a job that keeps them busy," said Sgt. Vincent Recasino, team leader, 1st Bn, 37th Armor Rgt. "They probably work until 5 p.m. each day and then return to their platoons and to their 'regular" jobs."

"Some days we work long hours," Recasino said.

The long hours they put in make FOB Al Mimir the cozy home that the other Bandits can enjoy.

• Date Taken: 03.20.2006
• Date Posted: 03.20.2006 12:39
• Story ID: 5781
• Location: SINJAR, IQ