Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit (MDSU) 2 and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 6 conducted joint training at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story (JEBLC-FS) June 16 in preparation for the salvage of Civil War Ironclad CSS Georgia.

Hissing from pressure valves being released and muffled communication from underwater divers to the console operator fill the air. A supervisor holding stop watches shouts commands to tenders who pull or heave in large air hoses.

"The purpose of this training was to take EOD techs who are already qualified divers and make them proficient in surface supply diving for the job we're about to undertake in Savannah, Georgia," said Senior Chief Navy Diver Steve Askew, a master diver assigned to MDSU 2.

Divers from MDSU 2 and EODMU 6 technicians will work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to bring up parts of the ship's armor systems, steam engine components, small structure pieces and all her weapons, which include four cannons and upward of 50 projectiles -- either rifle shells or cannon balls.

"During the first two weeks of the job, there will be one Navy Diver and one EOD technician diving together to retrieve unexploded ordnance and various artifacts," said Askew.

Although EOD technicians are qualified in scuba and closed circuit rebreathers, they lacked the hardhat Kirby Morgan 37 (KM37) surface supply diving qualifications. The KM37 is a popular, bright yellow diving helmet used by the U.S. Navy.

"Anytime you're conducting underwater salvage you want to make sure you're giving the divers the maximum amount of protection that you can," said Askew. "This hardhat helmet gives them an unlimited air supply and allows them to stay down for longer periods of time."

The Savannah River has strong currents and low visibility, which divers have to take into consideration. While hardhat surface supply diving, divers can put on additional weight to stay down on the bottom.

"The helmet and weight give divers the maximum amount of protection while working in the Savannah River's conditions that they wouldn't otherwise have with scuba gear," said Askew.

The goal of the training was to ensure that all procedures are the same and both units blend seamlessly together.

"All of the dives yesterday were fine; they cleared," said Navy Diver 3rd Class Frank Ormonde, assigned to MDSU 2. "They [EOD technicians] were comfortable in the hard hats but didn't know some of the verbiage that we use for certain checks. Yesterday was a good day of working the kinks out, and today shows a lot more proficiency."

The joint training this week wraps up three months of training for the salvage operation, scheduled to take place from June 21 until Sept. 11. Although Sailors from MDSU 2 and EODMU 6 were focused during the training exercise, they were also very enthusiastic.

"I'm really excited," said Ormonde. "I was born and raised military. I dreamt of becoming a Navy diver my whole life, it's my dream job. To get to work on a ship that's 150 years old and from the Civil War era, it's an opportunity that doesn't come around very often."

EOD Group 2, headquartered at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach, oversees all East Coast-based Navy EOD mobile units, including one forward-deployed mobile unit in Spain, as well as EOD Expeditionary Support Unit (EODESU) 2, EOD Training and Evaluation Unit (EODTEU) 2, and Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit (MDSU) 2.

U.S. Navy EOD is the world's premier combat force for countering explosive hazards and conducting expeditionary diving and salvage.

For more news from Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2, visit www.navy.mil/local/eod2/.

For more news from Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, visit www.navy.mil/.