Quickly fix bog problems.

The 2nd Engineer Team was deployed to Abyei in early August, just as the rainy season was in full swing. Heavy rains day and night made the already bad traffic situation even worse. The terrain is more than 95% dirt, many roads are severely degraded, some roads are dead ends, impassable during the rainy season. Over the past time, vehicles getting stuck and stuck in the mud have become a nightmare for both locals and mission staff.

Early in the morning of August 15, the Captain of the 2nd Engineer Team received a call from the Mission Commander, requesting the deployment of a rescue team to rescue a UN oil tanker that had gotten stuck the day before on the road from To Dach to Goli. This is a vital route in the Northern sub-sector. In particular, the area where the truck got stuck was very close to the Amiet wholesale market, with heavy traffic and a complicated population situation. Immediately after receiving the order, the Captain of the Engineer Team quickly convened the Team Command to discuss and agree on a "rescue" plan.

Roads destroyed by floods have become a nightmare for residents and UN staff in Abyei.

After consultation, the team command agreed to deploy an emergency rescue team with a force of 15 people and 4 equipped vehicles, directly commanded by Major Vu Tri Xuyen, Deputy Captain of Engineering Team No. 2, to immediately set out to carry out the mission.

The 40km journey took the Rescue Team more than 2 hours to arrive due to the difficult terrain after heavy rain the day before. However, when they arrived at the scene, not only the UN tanker but also 2 local trucks carrying goods were stuck. The muddy dirt road, the large number of vehicles, plus the language barrier as the drivers were all locals who did not know English, made the "rescue" work more difficult. However, with careful preparation in terms of both human resources and equipment, along with the experience shared by the No. 1 Engineering Team, the Rescue Team quickly resolved the problem, successfully "rescuing" 3 stuck vehicles after 2 hours.

Engineer Team No. 2 helps to pull out people's vehicles stuck in the mud.

On August 16, the 2nd Engineer Team continued to deploy a working group to survey the area in the Southern Division led by Colonel Nguyen Viet Hung, Commander of the Vietnamese forces participating in the United Nations peacekeeping operations at the UNISFA Mission, Captain of the 2nd Engineer Team. On the way to survey, the working group encountered a pickup truck of a local resident stuck in the mud and unable to move. Immediately, the Command Board consulted and proposed a rescue plan using the winch of the command vehicle. After half an hour, the working group successfully pulled the pickup truck, helping the road to continue to be clear. The vehicle owner was very happy and thanked the 2nd Engineer Team for their enthusiastic and prompt help.

Clip: The first missions of the 2nd Engineer Team in Abyei.

Major Vu Tri Xuyen, Deputy Captain of the 2nd Engineer Team, said: “Immediately after arriving in Abyei, the 2nd Engineer Team organized a working group to survey all the routes handed over by the Mission, including: 44km of road in the Northern Division and 15km of road in the Southern Division. At the same time, plans were made to establish mobile teams, carefully prepare equipment, and be on duty regularly to ensure readiness to mobilize in all situations.”

The UN vehicle rolls out of the mud after being rescued.

After a long journey, working under harsh weather conditions, the officers and staff in the team were exhausted, but everyone felt excited because they had successfully rescued the vehicles in the first rescue deployment. In a place with unstable security like Abyei, if they were not promptly rescued from the swamp, the owners of these vehicles might have to eat and sleep in the forest, facing unexpected unsafe situations such as being attacked or robbed.

Mr. Hendrik Hamman, officer of the Integrated Military Engineering Department (IFMT) of the UNISFA Mission shared: “Just deployed to the area, the 2nd Engineer Team will have to take on a huge workload, both taking over the work of the 1st Echelon and ensuring the implementation of new tasks. But I believe that you will perform well the tasks assigned by the mission, because you are the Vietnamese Engineer Team. Thank you Vietnam”.

Article and photos :   THINH TRAN - HAI YEN (from Abyei)

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