Day 339

It's finally warming up here and the days are comfortable. Yesterday the temperature was in the 80's and the sun is shining again this morning. The change is welcome because much of our job is done outdoors. The other side of the coin is that we will see 100 degree days before we return home. Wearing full kit and going on patrol in the heat can not only be uncomfortable, it can result in a heat casualty. I have started drinking more water than needed in anticipation of hotter days. It is mandatory to wear a Camelbak on missions, which is a two liter water bladder that goes on your back.

Last summer on a routine mission outside of Camp Taji I ended up with a bad case of dehydration. Surprisingly it wasn't as bad as some of the other guys who actually passed out in the palm groves where we were pulling security. We were only out for three or four hours, but the sun was so hot that it sucked the water right out of us. By the time we made it to shade guys were puking and falling over each other.

I went and talked with my friends from 1-38 battalion and it turns out they have been doing much of the same work we do. They patrol Baqubah leaving from Camp Warhorse either in vehicles or dismounted. Some guys only pull guard in the towers on the perimeter of the camp. One difference is that they go on TST missions, flying around in a helicopter waiting for a lead. When they get the call they land and drag the suspect out of their location. Sometimes the suspect is lying in bed or they will be hiding in the bushes near their house. Our platoon never does these missions. Occasionally we help with raids, pulling security along the usual routes in case the suspects flee. We can also provide fire support with the 60mm mortar. As of late we have been busy going to various public works such as schools and government buildings. We make sure things are running smoothly and that terrorists aren't trying to take control of things.

Yesterday night we took several detainees from Camp Warhorse to Balad. Our platoon ran security for the vehicle that held the detainees and their interrogators. It took only a short time to get there because there wasn't much traffic in the other direction. One hold-up is the narrow bridge that crosses the Tigris River close to Balad. Vehicles can only cross one at a time in one direction so it creates a bottleneck. If a convoy passes you on the road otherwise, only one convoy may move at a time. The other must pull to the side and wait. This is to avoid accidents or confusion in case of an attack.

Once we reached Balad we went directly to the PAX terminal. The detainees were supposed to board a plane and go to a green zone where they will be questioned and eventually put on trial. We arrived around 1030 the plane was scheduled to take off at 0100. Some of the guys used the time to go to the PX which is larger and better than the one at Warhorse. I stayed back and took a nap in the Stryker. When 0100 rolled around, the plane that was scheduled to take the detainees was having engine problems and the take off time was pushed back an hour or so. I went back to sleep and at 0230 Alex our interpreter woke me up. The plane wasn't leaving that night so we mounted up and took the detainees back to Warhorse. We will have to wait until next week's flight which is frustrating. At least I wasn't freezing on the ride there and back.