Thursday, September 6, 2018
GC Seabees drilling for water
RIOHACHA, Colombia - Amidst a nearly decade-long drought, a team of U.S. Navy construction professionals assigned to the Gulfport, Miss.-based Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 133 began water well drilling exploration operations in Riohacha on Aug. 30 as part of Southern Partnership Station (SPS) 2018. NMCB-133 is working side-by-side with members of the Wayuu population who are indigenous to the Colombian town in an effort to bring a greater supply of fresh water to the community. The activity is labeled as an exploration because there is never a guarantee water will be found. To increase the chances of finding water, SPS and NMCB-133 has brought in an on-site geologist who is conducting scientific studies of the drilling area. (Source: Southern Partnership Station 09/096/18) NMCB 133 is a Navy Construction (Seabee) Battalion homeported on the Gulf Coast at Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport.