Kodiak
                                    28 November 1945


     5.  A great deal of time has been lost on this project 
in restoring cables damaged by the harbor Defense construct-
ing agency and by storms.  Also Harbor Defense magazines and 
various other structures are seldom located until just be-
fore construction starts and in seven different cases have 
been located on top of existing subterranean cable runs nec-
essitating rerouting of cables.  In one instance on Artillery 
Hill two magazines were located on a 152 pair cable run and 
1200 feet of cable had to be removed and rerouted in extremely 
bad terrain.  This reroute alone took 12 ditch diggers and a 
splicing crew two weeks to complete.  Cables have been knocked 
out in at least thirty separate locations usually by the con-
tractors' construction equipment.  700 feet of 26 pair sub-
marine cable between Long Island and North Cape is a complete 
loss due to road work which was not planned until two days 
after the cable was installed.  This cable will be replaced 
by a long aerial span.  Considerable storm damage was caused 
by floods in September.  This was one of the worst floods in 
years and in some cases river banks cut back 50 to 100 feet 
to cut out cables.  Damage in other places could have been 
prevented by anti-erosion work after the plow went through 
but which had not been done at the time of the flood.  All 
damage has now been repaired and anti-erosion work has been 
done where required.  One summers growth of sod will stop 
all erosion except where it is due to rivers or streams. 
A bulldozer was used for two weeks after the flood along 
the river between Kalsin and Pasagshak Bays for building 
embankments and restoring the river to its original course. 
400 feet of cable was rerouted along the river and some other 
reroutes may yet be required.  At one point near Pasagshak 
Bay the subterranean cable was plowed three feet deep in 
gravel across a river.  After the flood the cable was sus-
pended in water two feet above the bottom indicating the 
river bed had cut down at least five feet.  It was then 
necessary to install 200 feet of submarine cable at this 
location.  The weather during this fall has been extremely 
wet and stormy.  There is no snow on the ground and no frost 
at the present time.  A spell of dry cold weather would 
materially expedite the progress of the job.

     6.  Men now working on all projects at this station 
(90% on fire control) are as follows:

                 1  civilian engineer
                13  civilian ditch diggers
                17  ACS enlisted personnel
                 2  ACS officers
             30-50  Coast Artillery enlisted men
                 1  Coast Artillery officer 
                    Occasional details of 100 enlisted men
                     to pull in subterranean cable
                     
                     
                     CONFIDENTIAL