U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS, GULF REGION DIVISION

July 26, 2008
Release No.  080726-1

Building Hope for Iraqi Children (Basrah)

By A. Al Bahrani
Gulf Region South district

BASRAH, Iraq — ”I feel blessed to be working on this important project,” said Ryan Hartwig, construction representative with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Basrah Children’s Hospital Office

“Each time we go, we see more progress. I can look at the place now and actually visualize patients using this facility,” he continued. “It’s just very satisfying being part of this effort that will no doubt save or change the lives of so many Iraqi children.”

Several key partners are involved in the project including Project Hope (a nongovernment organization), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and the Iraqi Ministry of Health, explained Hartwig.

The overall price tag for the project now stands at $163.8 million. This total encompasses more than U.S. funds. It includes the $22 million grant from Spain being administered by the UNDP, $30 million from Project HOPE for high end medical equipment and hospital staff training, and $9.8 million from the Iraqi Ministry of Health for consumables. The MoH is also providing permanent electrical power, a wastewater treatment plant, and all the staff to operate the facility.

The hospital is designed to reduce child mortality in half within five years of its opening in southern Iraq – “a goal that will affect over one million children,” Hartwig said. The hospital will primarily be a referral center with a special focus on pediatric cancer, providing state-of-the-art specialty services never before available in Iraq.

Components of the project includes a 160,000 sq. ft. two-story, 94-bed children’s hospital building, mechanical and electrical plants, a 38-bed dormitory, medical waste treatment system, oxygen generation plant, warehouse, back-up generators, roads/parking and landscaping.

“We’re truly doing good things over here and changing people’s lives,” Hartwig said. “What you don’t see on TV are the positive projects we’re completing and turning over to the Iraqi government -- new water treatment facilities, road paving, sewer lines, primary healthcare centers, substations, and schools,” he added. 

A native of Le Center, Minn., Hartwig had been working as a natural resources manager at USACE’s Savannah District prior to his deployment to Iraq. “I couldn’t have made a better decision. It has been a life-changing experience. I feel like I have grown leaps and bounds personally, professionally and even spiritually,” he added.

“I really enjoy the diverse team I work with in Basrah.  Navy Lt. Cmdr. Neil Underwood has kept this project together through the thick and thin and deserves a lot of the credit for where it is today, along with our Iraqi engineers who are at the project site every day. I can’t say enough about my guys out there. They are very capable and competent and have all the local knowledge that really allows this project to continue moving ahead,” said Hartwig.

During their off-duty hours, Hartwig points out that one of the more interesting things to do at Basrah is the “Everest Challenge,” He explained that when one climbs the stairs to the 14-story-high Basrah Air Control Tower 233 times, “you have reached the equivalent height of Mt. Everest. The run up and down the tower used to be a lot more fun before the temperature rose above 110 degrees everyday! It might not be quite as scenic as Nepal, and maybe a little warmer than Everest, but it is as exhausting and is a great workout for the lungs and legs,” he explained.

“It is a good way to get out of camp and do something constructive with my friends and colleagues.” About a half-dozen of us do 5 to 7 flights a day. Randy Mendenhall is the real mountaineer as he does the tower 10 times per day, and has already completed the ‘Everest Challenge’ twice.”  Hartwig himself finished his ‘Everest Challenge’ June 24 and the Basrah staff presented him a certificate of achievement that he proudly displays.

“I will never forget these moments at Camp Blackadder (located alongside the Basrah International Airport).  The paradigm shift I have experienced in the seven months I have been here would have taken me seven years to realize back in the States.”

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Note: In addition to the new construction of the Basrah Children’s Hospital, the Gulf Region Division has rehabilitated 22 hospitals and work continues on three more. Additionally, 115 Primary Healthcare Clinics have been built for underserviced areas, with work remaining on 17 more.

Note:  A. Al Bahrani is the public affairs Specialist for the Gulf Region South district, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Iraq. For more information, contact public affairs by phone at 540- 665-1233, by e-mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , or visit www.grd.usace.army.mil.

Note: For high resolution photo see www.grd.usace.army.mil/news/releases/index.asp

BCH1: About 500 Iraqis are currently working on the Basrah Children’s Hospital project and the 160,000-sq.-ft., 94-bed main facility is expected to be completed by year’s end. (USACE photo)