CHAPTER3 MOBILIZATION: 1974 - 1978 ENEWETAK CAMP REHABILITATION: 1974 - 1976 Before cleanup operations could begin it was necessary to prepare base camps for the cleanup forces and to mobilize the required manpower and materiel. The military base at Enewetak Atoll had been placed in caretaker status in 1968 by the USAF Space and Missile Test Center (SAMTEC). By ! January 1974, when the atoll was transferred to the Defense Nuclear Agency (DNA), thefacilities at the main base camp on Enewetak Island required extensive rehabilitation before they could be used to support a significant work force. Operation and maintenance of the Enewetak Camp had been accomplished for SAMTECbya contractor, Management and Technical Services Company, Inc. (MATSCO). The contract covered only minimum essential life-support systems for a small contractor force which maintained a nominal presence on the atoll. The contract was transferred to Field Command, DNA, which continued it in effect until a more dynamic base support system could be developed and financed. The Fiscal Year (FY) 1974 operating funds transferred to DNA by the Air Force barely covered the caretaker contract costs. The Air Force had agreed to accomplish essential repairs to the runway but had not budgeted for repair or replacement of other facilities, such as the water distillation and electrical power systems, which were on the verge of collapse.! Field Command promptly initiated several actions to rehabilitate these essential facilities (Figure 3-1 and 3-2). In June 1974, four excess 800-kilowatt diesel generators were obtained from Kwajalein Missile Range to replace the turbine generators the Atomic Energy Commission had installed at Enewetak following Typhoon Olga. These were installed by the Corps of Engineers, Pacific Ocean Division (POD), and their contractor, American Electric Co. The replacementgenerators provided far morereliable power than the turbines though they used half as much fuel. The first of several new water distillation units was procured and installed to replace obsolete and unserviceable units. Since the communications system was a mixture of U.S. Navy and commercial equipment, Field Command obtained both U.S. Navy and factory assistance in repairing and replacing components. These actions were financed by FY 1974 DNA Operations and Maintenance (O&M) funds. FY 1975 O&M funds were requested for additional projects, including repair of the electrical distribution system 143