PYEONGTAEK, South Korea — When soldiers uncase new flags at upcoming ceremonies in Uijeongbu, Seoul, Pyeongtaek and Daegu this month, units there will display new names that should make it easier for people to know where they are on the map.
The Area II Support Activity at Yongsan Garrison in Seoul will become the U.S. Army Garrison-Yongsan; the Area III Support Activity at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek becomes the U.S. Army Garrison-Humphreys; the Area IV Support Activity at Camp Henry in Daegu becomes the U.S. Army Garrison-Daegu.
The Area I Support Activity at Camp Red Cloud in Uijeongbu is expected to decide what its new name will be sometime before this Friday, officials said.
The units are part of the Army’s Installation Management Command. It’s making the changes so that its subordinate organizations worldwide will be named according to the same standard format.
IMCOM is headquartered in Arlington, Va., and oversees day-to-day operation of all Army installations.
The names will change on unit signs, stationary, vehicles, and in any other official references.
But when the U.S. military in South Korea wants to indicate the geographic area of the peninsula that’s covered by one of the four units, rather than to the units themselves, it’ll stick with the “Area” names, said John Nowell, an IMCOM–Korea spokesman.
That means, for example, that when it issues weather alerts, for example, officials will speak of the weather in “Area I” or “Area IV,” Nowell said. The same goes for posting off-limits restrictions and announcements about such things as noncombatant evacuation exercises, he said.
And while the new names will specify a particular garrison, that won’t necessarily be the same as a servicemember’s duty station, Nowell said.
A soldier could be assigned to the U.S. Army Garrison-Daegu, for example, but could actually live and work at Camp Carroll in Waegwan, about 30 minutes north of Daegu.
Celebrate the change
U.S. Army Installation Management Command–Korea units plan the following ceremonies to mark their change of unit names:
FridayArea I Support Activity, 2 p.m., Camp Red Cloud gym, Uijeongbu.Area II Support Activity, 2 p.m., Lombardo Field, next to Collier Field House, Yongsan Garrison, Seoul.
March 15Area III Support Activity, 3 p.m., Community Activities Center, Camp Humphreys, Pyeongtaek.
Date to be announcedArea IV Support Activity, Camp Henry, Daegu.
From staff reports
