129th EOD Company redeploys from Kuwait

7th Infantry Division
Story by Staff Sgt. Mark Miranda

Date: 07.25.2014
Posted: 07.28.2014 16:22
News ID: 137536
129th EOD Company redeploys from Kuwait

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. – The 129th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company, 3rd EOD Battalion, 555th Engineer Brigade, held a redeployment ceremony at the 110th Chemical Battalion Readiness Bay July 25, to commemorate the unit return from Kuwait and Qatar.

Approximately 40 Soldiers of the 129th EOD Company came home from a nine-month deployment in support of the International Security Assistance Force mission in Kuwait and Qatar.

“The unit provided ordnance disposal, and counter-IED tactics that enabled their teams to eliminate and reduce chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high yield explosive hazards from the area of operations,” said 1st Lt. Kurt Peterson, human resources, 3rd EOD Bn.

The unit also coordinated and executed a partnership mission with the Kuwaiti National Guard and land forces, Kuwaiti navy, Qatar army, and Jordanian Special Forces.

“The 129th EOD Co. was awarded the Army Safety Streamer for accomplishing all of this without a single accident,” Peterson said.

Amy Bene, a Navy lieutenant stationed in Bremerton, Wash., waited with great anticipation for her husband, 1st Lt. John Bene to march into the bay, so that he could meet their 6-month-old daughter, Avery.

“He’s only seen her over Skype, so this is going to be quite a moment for our family,” said Amy Bene, a nurse from St. Louis.

As the bay door rolled up and the company marched in, one child decided not to wait for the end of the ceremony, running to wrap her arms around her father, 1st Sgt. Jason McClintock.

“Everybody came home without injury, without casualties – mission accomplished,” said Lt. Col. Stephen Kavanaugh, commander, 3rd EOD Bn., in his remarks before giving the command to uncase the unit colors.

Soon after, the bay filled with cheers following the ceremony-closing statement: “Families – reunite with your Soldiers.”

The 129th EOD Company teams completed more than 260 EOD missions, disposing of U.S. unserviceable ammunition, 183 tons of Kuwaiti demolitions by detonation and 897,000 rounds of small arms destroyed by incineration. The unit conducted large-scale demolition operations with Kuwaiti land forces for seven months.