Posted on 10/24/2004 9:04:45 PM PDT by geekchick
Six Police Stations Open In Samarra
SAMARRA, Iraq – Police here are much safer now, following the construction of six new fortified police stations.
Engineers assigned and attached to the 1st Infantry Division built one station a day for six days beginning Oct. 11, and spread them evenly throughout the city.
The stations cost about $100,000 apiece, according to Sgt. 1st Class Armondo Cadena, a combat engineer and platoon sergeant with C Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment. Much of that money went to ensuring security. “They will withstand rocket-propelled grenades, car bombs, and mortars,” Cadena said.
It took only five or six hours to finish each station, according to Sgt. Charles Miller, a heavy equipment operator with B Company, 216th Engineer Battalion.
“They were built from scratch,” he said. “They each have four conexes that were built at FOB Speicher by carpenters from our company, then hauled here with all the concrete.”
While it was important to give the police a place to work and Samarra residents a place to report problems, the overriding concern was for the officers’ well-being.
“It’ll be safer for the Iraqi police,” Miller said. “The buildings are strong, with bunkers and barriers. You can’t just drive right up to them.”
But when the buildings went up, the police were supplied with more than concrete and a roof.
“Everything was put in – brooms, desks, chairs, paper. They had everything ready to go,” Miller said.
The construction was part of an ongoing 1st Infantry Division effort to rebuild Samarra. Work is underway on several other projects, including schools, hospitals, and street repair. (Story by Sgt. W. Wayne Marlow, 1st Infantry Division Public Affairs Office)
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