Today Shaun and I headed out with some Infantry folks from Quebec for a mounted patrol. We moved from our FOB out to provide security and support for engineers who were building a paved road north of our position. Paved roads might sound frivolous in a place that struggles to provide clean water but paved roads really deter the planning of IEDs. As much as we westerners think that IEDs are bad for our troops, we are reminded that for every soldiers killed by and IED, 25 Afghans also lose their lives to them. IED’s are a terror weapon and paving the roads is a great project to protect solider and civilian alike.
In the district we are in the Canadians area responsible for patrolling the roads. This task falls on the engineers and infantry with the support of the ANA and ANP. If I were to assess risk in Afghanistan it would start with an administrator sitting in an air conditioned trailer in KAF and end with the engineers and infantry outside the wire, driving or walking the roads. I don’t assign importance as every role supports the end goal but after riding in the LAV out on these rough roads, one develops a certain appreciation for the risk these soldiers are taking. Very gutsy stuff. Shaun did a brilliant job capturing images of the soldiers on the move, during dismounts and when we hit various smaller patrol bases (austere indeed). All in all it was a great day and we captured enough info for at least 3 paintings.
I might start to sound like a broken record but again today we were amazed at the level of cooperation with the soldiers we were attached to. Nothing but love. All the troops we worked with were happy to see us, happy to have us along (although a little amazed that we’d want to go outside the wire) and more than a little interested in what the end results would looks like. Shaun spends a fair amount of time over here getting some of the photos ready to hand back to the soldiers. They focus on their jobs and don’t really get a chance to snap pictures and to boot, Shaun’s photos are better than anything they’ve ever seen. While in the FOB we are attached to the gunners (also from Quebec) for accommodation, care and feeding and they have been exceptionally accommodating. A happy, professional crew who, at over halfway through their tour, are still keen and ready to dole out a world of hurt when called on.
We were informed today that for reasons I can’t go into here, we are ordered back to KAF. Can’t release the details but its quite a bit ahead of our original schedule. Its bittersweet as we’d much rather stay in the FOB than in KAF. We’ll miss this place (and Shaun will waste away with the loss of the flying kitchen) but we have captured a lot of content and I’m confident we’ll get another chance to get outside the wire before heading home.
No comments:
Post a Comment