Seabees Cleanup High School in Support of Operation Tomodachi

By Lt. j.g. Benjamin Dunn, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133 Public Affairs

SENDAI, Japan (NNS) -- Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 133 provided support for Joint Support Forces Japan (JSF-J) March 30 at a local Sendai, Japan, high school affected by the March 11 tsunami and earthquake.

Seven NMCB 133 Seabees operating out of Camp Sendai in the Miyagi Prefecture, were part of a 50-person joint-forces team tasked with supporting cleanup efforts at the Ishinomaki Technical High School.

More than 800 students, school staff and local residents were isolated on the second floor of the high school for two days without running water, while the first floor was flooded with mud and debris in the rush of the tsunami.

Service members from the U.S. Marines, Army, Air Force and Navy, in conjunction with the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF), joined school officials and students with the cleanup of the classrooms, common spaces and student hall. Heavily soiled walls and workstations were scrubbed. Floors were cleared of mud and mopped, and damaged furniture and debris were removed as the school was restored to working order.

"It was great to go out and get involved with the cleanup and assist in the recovery effort. You could tell the students and school staff were excited and very appreciative to receive our support," said Builder 1st Class Matthew Culberson, a Seabee from NMCB 133 who participated in the cleanup.

The Seabees, and civilian and military leadership, collaborated on site to direct the efforts. Seabees are intimately familiar with disaster recovery operations, especially to those of NMCB 133 and other Atlantic-based battalions whose Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, Miss., homeport was heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Disaster recovery is a primary mission of the U.S. Naval Construction Force, who train extensively for and excel in contingency operations.

The school's vice principal requested assistance with cleanup efforts to restore the school in time for the student's entrance exams.

Ishinomaki Technical High School was the first of many schools identified by the JGSDF slated to use U.S. forces in cleanup operations. The JGSDF has requested U.S. military assistance in clearing mud and heavy debris from the school grounds of over 40 damaged schools in the Miyagi Prefecture.

One of the benefits of clean up projects like this is, once schools are re-opened, students return to school and parents are free to return to work, and to contribute more to the recovery of their homes and towns. As children return to school, a sense of normality can be established while progress toward recovery is achieved with a greater sense of hope in the wake of the disaster.

NMCB has provided engineering and disaster-recovery subject matter expertise, and advisement of Naval Construction Force capability during humanitarian assistance and distaster relief efforts in the region.

Operation Tomodachi is a joint effort between the combined forces of the U.S. Military and the Japan Self-Defense Force aimed at facilitating recovery efforts in northeastern Japan.