Things are hectic, and there is little-to-no time for rest or pause, but journal writing (to include this blogspot) is a great cathartic release for me.
Yesterday we almost lost a soldier. When he test fired his .50 caliber machine gun, it exploded. Shrapnel flew into his leg, severing his femoral artery.
A good soldier I know well, who works as a Miami-Dade cop, acted calmly and quickly. He put a tourniquet around the gunner's leg and provided top-notch medical attention. It saved the soldier's life.
The surgeons were able to graph a part of the vein/artery from his lower leg into the upper right thigh. He's flying out today on a one-way ticket home, and the rest of the soldiers cleaned up the gory, massive amount of blood spilled in the vehicle.
Those are the kinds of stories you never hear about on the news. In fact, yesterday our doctor told me about a guy from another unit here who was stabbed with a knife in the head by an Iraqi. It hit him just below his Kevlar helmet, penetrating about 3 to 4 inches into his temple.
The soldier was coming out of a home after searching it for bombs, weapons and bad guys. As soon as he came out of the door he was attacked from the side. The soldier quickly grabbed his attacker, threw him on the ground and detained him. Only later did he realize a knife was sticking from the side of his head.
The Doc told me the large edged weapon penetrated into the soldier's brain, but he is doing very well in his recovery thanks to a skilled neurosurgeon.
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1 comment:
hi there, i bet that there are many stories you don't hear where you live in the protected IZ or camp or whereever, stories of what some blackwater does to civilians etc...
anyway, i hope that both guys of your story are ok, and i'll pray for them.
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