Newly installed electrical power equipment in Fallujah Iraq

A 132-kilovolt substation in Fallujah, projected for completion in October, will result in more consistent and stable electricity for Fallujah residents.

The $14.8 million project is being managed by the Gulf Region Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Iraq, and funded by the Iraqi Relief and Reconstruction Fund.

The substation was damaged in a fire caused by circuit breaker failure in Jan. 2005, and was identified by the Division’s Gulf Region District as a significant capacity-building project for Fallujah.

Maj. Joseph Geary, the officer in charge of the District’s resident office in Fallujah, praised the team for working steadfastly on the project and overcoming various issues, including getting the equipment on site in good condition.

For example, when a transformer arrived damaged, security concerns hindered its delivery to the repair facility in another province. GRD officials and the contractor worked together to negotiate the transport and repair of the critical component. Now, in coordination with Iraqi security forces, the project is progressing along.

“It’s a great story where the contractor, GRD and the Deputy General from the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity all worked together to move this project closer to the finish line,” said Geary.

The transformer is at the factory for repair and is expected to be ready in approximately 60 days. In the meantime, the contractor is continuing to work on the switching equipment and other internal components.

When the 132-kilovolt substation is complete, the Fallujah Minister of Electricity will have more latitude in managing the power grid as it relates to allocating power from area to area.

Improvements at the Fallujah substation will also provide expansion capacity with the addition of another bay and main transformer.

During its peak construction season, construction of the Fallujah substation employed
40 Iraqi workers.

The Gulf Region Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Iraq has completed thousands of reconstruction projects in partnership with the U.S. government and the government of Iraq. Since 2004, GRD has completed 4,626 projects throughout Iraq valued at more than $7.2 billion, and has 287 projects ongoing.

MNF-I
By Ronald A. Reeves
Gulf Region District

Newborn baby sleeps in an incubator at Abu Ghraib Hospital, west of Baghdad

For the first time in many years, the Abu Ghraib Hospital was able to turn on its lights in November – without having to count down the hours until the lights went out again.

After several months of planning and work by the Beladiya, the Abu Ghraib Hospital started receiving constant power through an 11kv power line that stretches nearly 1.5 kilometers back to the Al Ban Substation.

The new 11kv power line is exempted from the load-shedding plan that forces substation operations to ration limited power to the various neighborhoods connected to it on a two hours on and a four hours off schedule, said Capt. Mark Gillman, a native of Las Vegas, who serves as an engineer, assigned to 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team “Warrior,” 25th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad.

With sufficient power, the more than two dozen physicians are now able to run basic services without disturbance, including laboratory equipment, refrigeration of medications and more complex neonatal incubators and echocardiograms, he explained.

Periodic stoppages throughout the day have long hindered treatment, particularly for inpatients. The 50-bed hospital is the primary inpatient facility in west Baghdad and serves more than 200,000 residents from Khadamiyah to Balad.

The U.S.-funded project cost approximately $200,000 and began in August, with the digging of a trench from the substation to the hospital and reinforcing certain areas of the trench to provide extra support for the line.

The Abu Ghraib Hospital electric line project is just one project of the hospital network, which is funded by both the United States and the government of Iraq.

“We are able to move forward on many projects now due to the increased security by the local security forces,” said a member of the Abu Ghraib Qada Council, after a meeting at governance center.

The 11kv line project is just one element of a group of larger projects to completely renovate the hospital: inside and out.

This was made possible only through the cooperation and coordination of the Abu Ghraib Nahia Council, Abu Ghraib Electric Office, Abu Ghraib Beladiya Office, Abu Ghraib Irrigation Office, Abu Ghraib Sewage Office and the Karkh Directorate General for Electricity Distribution.

If not for the support and cooperation of these GoI offices to plan and approve the dedicated electric line, the hospital would have continued in its struggle to support a population of more than 300,000 people with the eight hours of sporadic power it received per day.

“I have been overjoyed at the support of the local government,” said Dr. Najh Noori Jaber, hospital director, “We have been in much need, and they have come through to help the people of Abu Ghraib.”

DVIDS
By Capt. Benjamin Roark
2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team “Warrior,” 25th Infantry Division