Photo By Senior Airman Janelle Patiño | Staff Sgt. Will, 379th Civil Engineer Squadron force protection lead, provides force...... read more read more
Subscribe
The night shift was almost over when Senior Airman Jacob Holtje and Senior Airman Israel Moore, both 379th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron force protection escorts, noticed orange smoke in the sky coming from an area where contractors were working while conducting their last zone security of the night.
To the team’s surprise, a flaming steam roller was the source of the smoke that evening.
The 379th ECES force protection team, which ensures safety violations do not occur in controlled movement areas while contractors work around restricted assets or areas, responded immediately.
“Upon seeing the smoke, I checked the area and saw flames and a small fire on a steam roller caused by an oil leak. At that point, there was still a driver in the equipment attempting to operate it,” Moore said. “As soon as I saw the fire, I immediately thought ‘preservation of life’ -- first and foremost, I cared about the safety of the contractors. I know how hard they work not only for themselves, but more so for their families.”
When Moore realized the workers were in imminent danger, he asked them to evacuate to safety as flames began to spread, engulfing the steam roller. Once workers were at a safe distance, Moore contacted the control tower to report the incident while Holtje continued the security sweep to other areas.
“While the fire fighters extinguished the fire, the piece of equipment then began to spit more flames and fluid as hydraulic and oil lines began to burst due to the heat,” said Staff Sgt. Will, 379th ECES force protection lead. “Moore, Holtje and I maintained a perimeter around the scene so that fire fighters could do their job while creating a buffer between the workers and the fire team.”
Due to the location of the incident, workers towed the steam roller using a front loader, which was the only machinery capable of pulling it away from the scene, to resume runway operations, Will added.
The force protection team then conducted foreign object debris checks to ensure the runway was clean and safe for take-off. They also worked with the construction team to expedite closure of the entry control point and move all remaining equipment to a safe location.
After security checks and closing procedures, airfield operations resumed just 24 minutes behind schedule, which is, according to Will, an extremely fast recovery, especially for an incident such as a fire.
Will commended how the fire department, force protection and airfield controllers handled the situation in tandem.
“We expect Airmen to react in situations like this, especially because they work on the flight line,” he said. “Moore did a great job in handling the situation with no guidance. Without his actions, I am certain that the end-state of the scenario would have been much worse with possible injuries incurred.”
According to Will, it is important for everybody, no matter where they work, to stay cognizant and maintain situational awareness, even if their shift for the day is about to end. Complacency, he added, hinders both safety and the mission, especially on the flight line.
Moore was recognized by wing leadership for preventing a bad situation from getting worse and reacting in a calm and professional manner. He was recognized for his merit and contributions to the force protection team.
“I played a small part in this incident, but I am grateful to be recognized for what I did,” Moore said. “My teammates did an outstanding job of securing the runway, all the contractors and the assets out here. They are very pivotal in the success of what we have accomplished.”
| Date Taken: | 05.17.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 05.17.2016 09:04 |
| Story ID: | 198340 |
| Location: | AL UDEID AIR BASE, QA |
| Web Views: | 149 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Force protection Airmen halt flaming steam roller, by SrA Janelle Patiño, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT