CAMP KRUTKE, Afghanistan – Seabees assigned to Task Force True Grit departed early May 22 to execute a Hasty Road Repair (HRR) operations for Regional Command Southwest in Southwestern Afghanistan.
Hasty Road Repair operations are expedient repairs to strategic roadways that have suffered damaged restoring mission capability within a relatively short timeline.
“The Concept of HRR operations are similar to the expanding foam that you find at home,” said Equipment Operator 1st Class Darin Hagen. “There’s a little more involved but the concept is almost the same.”
Once the hole is prepared, it is lined with plastic. Next, it is filled with boulders to take up space. Afterwards, the quick-drying foam base and topcoat is applied. Once the procedure is finished, the hole is completely sealed and safe to drive on.
“Since the foam is light, it holds everything in place,” said Hagen. “Then boulders also help because they take up space, add strength and reduce the amount of foam we use.”
The quicker drying time reduce the amount of exposure HRR teams are exposed to dangerous situations.
“In the past we would have to wait until concrete dried,” said Hagen.“ Today, it dries in about 15 minutes.”
“We utilize these roads a lot, so we can transport our equipment from city to city,” said Construction Mechanic Jacob Levick. “HRR operations allow us to continue on with the mission and keep going.”
NMCB 15 Seabees support units of the U.S. Army’s 555th Engineer Brigade, known as Joint Task Force Triple Nickel.
“Joint Task Force Triple Nickel will be taking the lead on this mission,” said Hagen. “NMCB 15 provides extra HRR supplies, a backhoe operator for them as well as dump truck[s] full of boulders.”
NMCB 15 is currently deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and is an expeditionary element of U.S. naval forces that support various units worldwide through national force readiness, civil engineering, humanitarian assistance and building and maintaining infrastructure.
![Pete Hegseth shakes hands with Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance](http://images03.military.com/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_large/public/2024-11/ApNewsroom_Trump_Pardon_19401.jpg?itok=rdqmVqvA "Pete Hegseth, left, with Fox News, shakes hands with Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance during his appearance on "Fox & Friends," Monday, Nov. 18, 2019, in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)")
