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NEWS | July 27, 2021

2021 brings back high operations tempo for troop projects at Fort McCoy

By Scott Sturkol Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office

In 2020, right before the busiest part of training at Fort McCoy was to begin, the post and the rest of the world instead focused on the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

That response also affected the progress of troop projects at Fort McCoy, said Larry Morrow, troop projects coordinator for the Fort McCoy Directorate of Public Works. So going into 2021, Morrow said many projects needed attention. And so far for the year, they’ve been getting that attention.

In May, Navy Seabees with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 25 (NMCB25) completed troop project work at Fort McCoy’s Pine View Campground. This included building a gazebo next to Suukjak Sep Lake. NMCB25 was previously based at Fort McCoy before being relocated to a new installation.

In June, Soldiers with the Army Reserve’s 492nd Engineer Company, based in Mankato, Minn., started work on an Earth-moving troop project near Improved Tactical Training Base Liberty. That same project, in July, has Soldiers with Wisconsin National Guard’s 950th Engineer Company (Route Clearance) continuing the work that the 492nd started.

Morrow mentioned a few of the projects planned for this year. They include:

• finishing a shower building at Improved Tactical Training Base Freedom.

• relocating a berm at Range 102.

• building a storage building at the training ammunition storage point.

• completing a line of communications bridge project just south of the Combined Arms Collective Training Facility.

• completing some trail repairs behind EC.

• constructing a break room in building 1675.

• installing flag poles at the entrance to the CACTF.

• installing an air compressor hook-up at building 2786.

• building helicopter tie-downs at Young Air Assault Strip.

Many troop projects were planned for completion during the spring and summer, Morrow said.

The troop projects are also much appreciated by the engineer personnel who do the work. Second Lt. Nick Bures, 4th Platoon leader for the 950th, said his newer troops, like Spc. Seth Abbot, appreciate the drive time they achieved with the company’s heavy equipment during their work on the Fort McCoy troop projects.

“Some of these Soldiers haven’t had this much drive time with this machinery in a long time and some haven’t had any on this equipment,” Bures said. “This work is wonderful, especially for the new guys.”

Morrow said completing these projects is very important.

“If we didn’t have these projects, many troops wouldn’t get the training they need, and the post wouldn’t benefit from the work they do to improve Fort McCoy training ranges and quality-of-life programs,” he said.

Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”

Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base.