A lone Humvee sits on a once-bustling airstrip on Camp La Guardia during a departure ceremony Friday. (Seth Robson / Stars and Stripes)
CAMP LA GUARDIA, South Korea — The 2nd Infantry Division’s 50th Engineer Company — or “Pirates of the Imjin” — bid farewell to their home here Friday, marking the end of a 23-year relationship with South Korea.
The unit’s mission was to build floating bridges across waterways such as the Imjin River near the Demilitarized Zone and the Han River in Seoul.
The unit is moving to Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., as part of the 2nd Infantry Division’s transformation, officials said.
Camp La Guardia is the first of several U.S. military bases in the Uijongbu area to be returned to South Korea.
Uijongbu City is planning to construct a six-lane road and a park on land occupied by the base, Yonhap News reported last week.
The 33-acre base was virtually empty on Friday. The only vehicles parked on the base airstrip, once jammed with vehicles and bridging equipment, were those bringing guests to the departure ceremony.
Commander Capt. Dave Stewart told soldiers gathered in a large hangar that their unit is the most highly trained and competent bridge company, “in the world.”
Stewart recalled several recent bridging operations in South Korea, including a more than 500-foot Imjin River crossing and 2,200-foot crossing on the Han River.
“The 50th has a long and prestigious history and as we close this chapter and depart the Korean Peninsula it represents a new beginning,” he said.
Pvt. Kevin Sentieri, 20, of Port Orchard, Wash., said January’s Han River bridge operation was the highlight of his five months in South Korea.
Col. Rock Donahue, 2nd ID’s Engineer Brigade commander, praised the 50th for transporting more than 300 pieces of bridging equipment to Pusan Port.
“Four dry support bridge launchers arrived safely at Pusan last night,” he said.
The 50th began its history on March 10, 1943, as the 1054th Engineer Port Construction and Repair Group. The unit, which was deactivated, reactivated and renamed several times, was involved in port repair during many important World War II Pacific campaigns and during the Korean War. It joined the 2nd Engineer Battalion as Echo Bridge Company in 1963 and became the 50th Bridge Company in 1992, Donahue said.
The unit’s departure “marks a significant milestone in the history of the division as we continue to transform to more modular and lethal units,” Donahue said.
The last 50th soldier will have left South Korea by May 25, he added.
Hwang Hae-rym contributed to this report.
