sentences:  Throughout 1940–1941 the US Navy constructed an airfield and navy base and built an extension to the Newfoundland Railway to service their facilities, owing to the condition of local roads.The navy base construction in particular was a priority with Navy Operating Base Argentia being officially commissioned on July 15, 1941.The reason for the rush was made clear on August 7, 1941 when the heavy cruiser USS "Augusta" (CA-31) carrying U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt arrived at an anchorage outside Argentia near Ship Harbour.