US Army Training Center - Yearbook (Fort Bragg, NC)

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, rg mmiigu ifrrw twiki? 452 f Mania: Top lett: Asphalt Plant .... Top right: Sewage Disposal Plant .... Center left: Fire Department in Action .... Center right: Loading Coal Fuel Yard No. I. . . . Bottom left: Laying Asphalt Paving. . . . Bottom right: Area Laboratory. Water Filtration Plant. 59

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PUST E EI EER Major Bryant, Major McLawhorn, Lt. Col. Mann, Capt. Solomon. The maintenance and repair of all buildings, structures. roads and grounds, as well as the operation of all utilities at Fort Bragg including Pope Field, is the responsibility of the Post Engineer. The scope of this work can readily be seen when one realizes that these activities include the up-keep, care, and improvement of more than 4,000 build- ings, 100 miles of paved roads, over 200 miles of primary stabilized earth roads, walks, hundreds of acres of im- proved grounds, all target ranges, and similar training aids. The maintenance and operation of water supply and dis- tribution, sewage disposal, electric power, central heating systems, refrigeration plant and units, sanitary fill for dis- posal of wastes, storm sewer systems, and insect, rat, and vermin control fall within the range of Post Engineer ac- tivities. Approximately 850 civilians, including engineers, mechan- ics of all trades, skilled technicians, and clerical personnel, supervised by Lieutenant Colonel Carroll L. Mann, Jr., Post Engineer, and a staff of four officers, are engaged in main- taining buildings and utilities systems, in furnishing heat. fuel, water, electricity and in disposing of sewage and waste. Six fully equipped maintenance shops, one located in the Main Post and one in each of the five outlying areas, are manned by the tradesmen necessary to perform quickly and adequately continuous maintenance requirements for every section of the Post. Special heavy maintenance equipment, such as power shovels, draglines, bulldozers, tractors and pans, air com- pressors, transit concrete mixers, and other similar items are serviced by skilled mechanics in the large Post Engineer Garage. These services are also extended to a fleet of over l50 trucks and other vehicles required in performing main- tenance to the extensive svstem of roads, runways, grounds, and developed areas on this Post. No Army Post can boast a more modern, well equipped, water filtration and sewage disposal plant than are in operation at Fort Bragg. A steady ample supply of potable Filter Gallery-Water Filtration Plant water, and an efficient sewage disposal system are of prime importance, and these two plants, each capable of handling seven million gallons per day, adequately supply the re- quirements of the Fort. At the area laboratory additional services are rendered in analyzing water samples for other Army installations in both North a11d South Carolina. A well organized and well trained Fire Department for the entire Post, supervised by the Post Engineer as Post Fire Marshal, has been responsible for the very creditable fire loss record achieved here. This department, consisting of 96 trained firemen, operates 14- Hre trucks from eight strategically located fire stations. Included is one station and three crash fire fighting trucks for plane crashes and other emergencies at Pope Field. A continuing mosquito contirol progrlam, eliminating breeding places on many miles of streams and swamps is carried on by Post Engineer personnel under the tech- nical supervision of the Post Surgeon. Other insect, rodent, and vermin control measures are also performed by this group, if required, for adequate health and safety of troops stationed at this Post. ln addition to maintenance, repair, and operation of utilities activities, the Post Engineer organization is respon- sible for many other important duties. Over 120,000 tons of coal consumed annually at the Fort are received, stored, and issued to the various units stationed here. The readiness and usefulness of combat troop equipment are dependent upon the packing and crating for overseas destination, which duty is performed by Post Engineer personnel, trained and skilled in this work. Finally, the Post Engineer must prepare plans and estimates of costs for requests of projects of a non-recurrent nature, involving additions and alterations to existing build- ings, structures or utilities, as well as reconstructions of facilities damaged or destroyed by fire, storms, etc. After approval by higher headquarters, the work is performed by either Post Engineer personnel or by contract.

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Admrttrng Office Right, left to right: Col. J. N. WillIams, C. O. Regional Hospital Col. J. R. Underwood, Post Veterinariang Brig. Gen. H. C. Coburn Post Surgeon: Col. E. W. Cowan, Post Dental Surgeon. Second row Col. R. C. Tatum, Assistant Post Surgeon: Lt. Col. F. H. Herpe! Personnel Center Surgeon: Lt. Col. J. W. Nance, Executive Officer. Third row: Maj. R. L. Siegel, FARTC Surgeon: Maj. G. R. Carpenter, Medical Inspector: Capt. T. W. Long, Post Dispensary. PUST SUHGEIJ THE MEDICAL DEPARTMENT Among the basic requirements for a successful army are Officers and men in prime physical condition. The rigors of modern warfare make it imperative that the soldiers on the battlefields and the troops performing the many vital tasks behind the lines maintain the highest standards of physical robustness and health. Keeping our Army healthy, preventing and eradicating disease, treating the sick and wounded, and training skilled personnel are the special mission and responsibility of the Army's Medical Department. ' Under the direction of the Post Surgeon, Brigadier General Henry C. Coburn Jr., the Medical Department on this reservation has been expanded greatly to answer the vastly increased demands made upon its services since our country entered the war. The enlargement of the medical services here was not a haphazard improvisation, some- thing hastily thrown together. Built on the firm foundation of a Medical Department in continuous operation for more than two decades, the medical services of today have kept pace with the rapid wartime growth of the Post. The Medical Department at Fort Bragg was established at the same time this station was activated as Camp Bragg in September, 1918. The first Post Surgeon was Major Douglas W. McEnery, and the earliest medical facilities consisted of a 500 bed Base Hospital, the major portion of which was never required or utilized for patients. Few changes occurred in the hospital setup of the Post until October, 1932, when a new 100-bed brick structure was erected. In time this building became the present Regional Hospital, Section 1. A year later, the Post Surgeon assumed responsibility for the medical care of the Civilian Conservation Corps units stationed in North Carolina. Early in 1939 Colonel Coburn succeeded Colonel Phillip Huntington as Post Surgeon, the position he now holds. Colonel Coburn has since been elevated,to the rank of Brigadier General. He is assisted in the performance of his duties by Colonel Roy C. Tatum, who has also been stationed at Fort Bragg since 1939. Shortly after Colonel Coburn became Post Surgeon, the expansion program at Fort Bragg got under way. Progress at first was gradual, but, following the countryfs entry into the War emergency, the building program was rapidly accelerated. By December, 1941, hospital facilities on the Post had already been extended to care for a military population of over 75,000. Two cantonment-type hospitals were completed and occupied in 1941. These became Sections 2 and 3 of the Station Hospital, with beds for over 3,000 patients. They were placed under the command of Colonel George D. Chunn and Colonel John H. Sturgeon, respectively. Later in 19411 the two sections were combined under the com- mand of Colonel Chunn, who operated the hospital until mid-1944, when he was transferred to Cushing General Hospital and Colonel James N. Williams was made Com- manding Oflicer of the hospital. As greater facilities were made available, additional personnel-doctors, dentists. nurses, trained enlisted men, and others-were added to the Post Surgeon's staff. Plans were ready at all times to broaden the scope of the department's activities as the population of the Post increased. During one period bf the Army's wartime growth, the Station Hospital was able, by absorption of other facilities, to accommodate 9,000 patients.