F-16 Crash Rapid Response Action, DeRidder, LA

Under our joint venture, Brice-AECOM JV1, Brice performed a Rapid Response Action to recover fuel contaminated soil and munitions and explosives of concern (MEC) resulting from an F-16 crash near DeRidder, Louisiana. The project objectives were to remove MEC; delineate, excavate, transport, and dispose of jet-fuel contaminated soil; and backfill and restore the site to original conditions. The affected area was estimated to be one acre. Brice completed the work in three separate mobilizations.

During the first mobilization, we excavated ~140 tons of jet-fuel contaminated soil from the crash site. The excavation was guided by visual and olfactory observations in conjunction with a photoionization detector. We placed the excavated soil into roll-off bins and sampled for waste characterization. During the excavation, Brice encountered a target practice 20-mm MEC item. We discontinued the work until our munitions team mobilized to perform MEC removal. As part of the second mobilization, our 7-person UXO team completed a surface sweep to remove any debris and material potentially presenting an explosive hazard (MPPEH) from the surface. We delineated and excavated additional contaminated soil containing MPPEH using shielded heavy equipment. We spread the excavated soil into 6-inch lifts for clearance by the UXO team using the spread and scan method. We used a blind seed program, and our UXO Quality Control Specialist inspected each lift of spread soil and the final excavated surface to verify QC. Debris and MPPEH were inspected and certified by the UXO team.

Our UXO team provided 24-hour security of discovered MEC until ANG recovered MEC items from the site. Following MEC removal and QA acceptance, Brice collected excavation confirmation soil samples from the sidewalls and base of the excavation to verify that contaminated soil had been successfully removed. During the third mobilization, we loaded 192.9 tons of jet-fuel contaminated soil into 12 roll-offs that were transported to a Subtitle D landfill for offsite disposal. Brice placed clean backfill from an off-site location in the excavation and graded the site to promote positive drainage away from the area. Any ruts or major disturbance in the immediate staging area and along the logging road were repaired prior to demobilization.

Project Highlights

• Completed the project with zero safety incidents