On Feb. 17, the
railhead at Camp Humphreys was officially opened in a ribbon-cutting ceremony,
and a tracked engineer recovery vehicle was the first vehicle to roll off the
train and onto the railhead.
The ceremony's first speaker
was Col. Joseph C. Holland, garrison commander of U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys.
“We are at the
forefront of incredible change, represented in a few minutes when we’ll offload
one of the heaviest pieces of equipment in the U.S. Army inventory,” Holland
said. “Before today, we were reliant on the airspace and the road networks to
be able to move in and out of Camp Humphreys. Now, this is a facility well
worthy of the USFK relocation that’s going on here at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek.
This facility is a focal point for that effort in a peace zone, to enable the
transition of the Second Infantry Division to Pyeongtaek and Camp Humphreys,” Holland
said. “This railhead is essential for us being able to fight tonight.”
Holland then introduced
the next speaker, Maj. Gen Theodore D. Martin, commanding general of the Second
Infantry Division.
“I tell you, it is
a great day to be a Soldier,” said Martin, “standing at what will soon be the
linchpin of our power projection capabilities for the ROK-U.S. alliance.”
Martin said, “It
is fitting today that this engineer recovery vehicle is the first of more than
390 tracked vehicles and 950 wheeled vehicles from our division, which will
eventually call Camp Humphreys home. It’s fitting that the engineers lead the
assault. Even in the earliest days of the Revolution, it’s been the engineers
that led the breach and established a foothold so that the rest of our army
could assemble together in one place, and that’s exactly what you’re seeing
here. I couldn’t be prouder of the entire team, and I’d like to salute the
government of the Republic of Korea, the U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys, all of
the engineers and the proud workers that made this day a reality.”
“So, without any
further ado, I think we need to cut that ribbon and get that armored vehicle on
the ground here so we can get about the business of bringing the entire
division to Camp Humphreys,” Martin said. “We are on the way; there is nothing
that stop us. Second to none! Katchi kapshida.”