HEADQUARTERS

Lt. Gen. Todd Semonite, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Commanding General and 54th U.S. Army Chief of Engineers, discusses flood mitigation efforts underway on U.S. Route 501, near Conway, S.C., following Hurricane Florence, Sept. 23, 2018. He is joined by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Charleston District, Commander, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Palazzini, Army National Guard 178th Combat Engineers Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Marty Hanks, and 1782nd Engineer Support Company Commander Capt. Timothy Quinn. RELATED NEWS STORY: Army Corps of Engineers joins forces with National Guard in response to Hurricane Florence By Edward N. Johnson, USACE, Tulsa District, Public Affairs CONWAY, S.C. — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers logistics and technical advisors join forces with South Carolina National Guard engineering battalions as part of Hurricane Florence response and recovery operations in Horry County, S.C. “I just want to say what an honor it is for the Corps of Engineers to support our FEMA, local, and state partners in this post-storm period,” said the USACE South Atlantic Division Commander, Brig. Gen. Diana M. Holland. “One of the ways we’re helping here is with flood mitigation efforts along U.S. Highway 501.” Philip Bethea, a construction engineer with the South Carolina Department of Transportation underscored the importance of keeping the 501 corridor open as long as possible. “At this point our goal is to keep at least one lane open in each direction of the highway to ensure local residents have access to medical services, food and supplies,” said Bethea. “Fortunately the Army Corps and National Guard are helping make that happen.” Lt. Col. William A. Matheny, commander, 122 Engineering Battalion, is the South Carolina National Guard’s senior engineer on the ground and at the center of efforts to mitigate the risk of flooding in the area. “This actually isn’t the first time I’ve had the privilege of serving with Brig. Gen. Holland,” said Matheny. “She was my commander during a 2013 deployment to Afghanistan and we really appreciate the resources she and her personnel are able to provide in support of our operations here on the ground in South Carolina.” With that in mind, USACE personnel are working around the clock to support the effort. According to Tommy Fennel, USACE’s on-site liaison officer assigned to the Horry County Emergency Operations Center, there are USACE personnel from across the country integrated into state and local efforts to provide logistics and technical advice regarding Hurricane Florence flood response efforts. “So far we’ve supplied more than 22,000 linear feet of wire mesh barrier material and 125,000 sandbags to this site alone,” said Fennel. “These mission critical supplies are being deployed at the direction of the South Carolina Department of Transportation to help protect areas impacted by flooding.” VIDEO NEWSCAST FILMED, EDITED AND PRODUCED BY: Edward N Johnson U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Tulsa District

Dr. David Pittman, Director of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, caught up with Dr. Emily Asenath-Smith, a research materials engineer from the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) in Hanover, NH. Dr. Asenath-Smith shared more about the important research she’s doing on ice and its impact on civilian infrastructure and military operations. Harness the Power of ERDC at ERDCINFO@USACE.ARMY.MIL

As FEMA's Engineers during a disaster – and America's engineers since 1775 – the Corps of Engineers responded after Hurricane Michael struck the Florida panhandle. More than 400 USACE personnel volunteered to assist residents during the recovery process to include assessments on critical public facilities, debris removal and route clearance, temporary emergency power, temporary roofing and technical monitoring for FEMA's temporary housing mission.

Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) are developing a way to optimize energy efficiency at McMurdo Station, Antarctica through an innovative application of existing technology. Harness the Power of ERDC at ERDCINFO@USACE.ARMY.MIL.

The Business Opportunities Open House (BOOH) was held on Tuesday, 27 November 2018, at the St. Mary's Conference Center. Over 200 firms registered to attend to meet and talk with PDT members, SME's from across our organization, and senior leaders, to learn WHAT we do and HOW they can help LRH meet mission goals. Since the Huntington District relies upon contractors to achieve its mission, this event allowed contractors to see the work we do and talk with our Subject Matter Experts and senior leaders in an effort to prepare them to meet our needs.

Sheila Sollis, Task Force Michael safety officer, discusses her role in ensuring safe practices in the workplace by both U.S. Army Corps of Engineers personnel and contractor-partners.

Brent Mortimer, Task Force Michal quality assurance, discusses staying physically and mentally fit while working 12-hour days, seven days a week, to help homeowners affected by Hurricane Michael. Video taken Nov. 21 in Port St. Joe, Florida, as Corps of Engineers employees near completion of more than 10,000 initial assessments as part of Operation Blue Roof. The initial assessment is the second step in the Blue Roof process, preceded by homeowners submitting a right-of-entry request allowing Corps of Engineers personnel access to the property to determine eligibility for the free, temporary repair. To date, more than 7,400 of the reinforced plastic sheeting have been installed.

Dr. David Pittman, Director of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), congratulates the ERDC – University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez (UPRM), Education and Research Internship Program (ERIP), on their 2018 Excelencia Award, given by Excelencia in Education. The ERDC-UPRM ERIP mission is to maintain an educational and research relationship between ERDC and UPRM to increase the number of Latinos pursuing graduate degrees in STEM. The success of the program led to its Excelencia Award in the Graduate Level category. Learn more about the ERDC-UPRM experience from some of its alumni.

Omri Shafrir, geospatial engineer for Task Force Michael, explains how unmanned aircraft systems and geographic information technology are being used to enable hurricane recovery operations in the Florida panhandle.