Desert Expertise Puts Unit on Call

As a San Diego firefighter, David Borja is accustomed to using plenty of water. But as an officer in the Army Reserves, Capt. Borja must find ways to produce and save it, especially in desert environments like Saudi Arabia’s.

Borja, 38, is the commanding officer of the 316th Quartermaster Company, a San Diego-based unit of about 100 Army reservists trained in the production, storage and distribution of drinking water.

Such skills make the 316th one of the units the Pentagon may need to support the U.S. military build-up in Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf. In fact, it is the only Army reserve unit in Southern California that the Pentagon has placed on alert for possible activation.

The 316th can find, purify and store up to 1.6 million gallons of water at a time, enough to support a division of about 10,000 soldiers, said Borja, who spoke during a press conference at the Miramar Army Reserve Center on Thursday. The unit distributes this water using tanker trucks and 20 miles of collapsible hose.

The 316th’s participation in training exercises in the Middle East has made it one of the most skilled companies of its type in the Army, said Lt. Col. Sylvan Finestone, the unit’s battalion commander.

“They are familiar with the desert terrain and the problems of operating in a high-heat environment,” Finestone said.

So far, no Southern California Army Reserve units have been called to active duty. But a phone call from Washington activating the 316th could come at any time, said Lt. Col. Earl Gunnerson, a spokesman for the 63rd Army Reserve Command Headquarters.

The call “could never come, it could come tomorrow,” Gunnerson said. “The alert order is the first word.”

The wait has been hardest on Borja’s 9-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son, Borja said. Borja, a single father, has custody of his children this summer. To help prepare them for his possible abrupt departure, Borja watches the news with his children and discusses events with them.

“Personally, it will be disruptive with the kids,” he said. “They’re like: ‘Dad, stay.’ I try to explain what’s going on. . . . You say, ‘I’ll be OK.’ ”