Shaffer
04-07-03, 07:22 AM
Following is a recent letter from U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Sean Metroka, a Nevada County resident serving in Iraq.
As you have probably deduced from the subject of this note, I've moved north from Camp Commando. I'm not at liberty to tell you my specific location but I can tell you it's a flat, dusty and otherwise an inhospitable place. It seems a bit more safe than our last days in Kuwait because we haven't been the target of any missile attacks since we moved.
I've attached a couple of pictures of our camp during the storm that blew through here last week. It was unbelievable and the pictures don't do it justice. The winds gusted up to 65 knots and were sustained at 35. The sand in the air wouldn't stop and got into everything. My sleeping tent was blown flat during the day and buried in sand. With help, I was able to dig it out (in the dark) and move it to the a space on the leeward side of group of vehicles. Other than the dust in the air, I slept pretty well that night.
On Sunday (30 March) I flew out to the British Division headquarters for a coordination and planning meeting. A picture of one of the helos coming into our landing zone to pick us up is attached. On the flight out, we saw some of the well fires and a fair amount of building rubble. I have since learned that the rubble we saw was created in the first Gulf War. The UK Division is located in an agricultural area and I saw some "real" trees - something I haven't seen for a long time. Don't misunderstand me - these trees might be considered tall shrubs in Nevada County but they really stand out around here.
http://www.theunion.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Site=TU&Date=20030403&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=104030054&Ref=AR
As you have probably deduced from the subject of this note, I've moved north from Camp Commando. I'm not at liberty to tell you my specific location but I can tell you it's a flat, dusty and otherwise an inhospitable place. It seems a bit more safe than our last days in Kuwait because we haven't been the target of any missile attacks since we moved.
I've attached a couple of pictures of our camp during the storm that blew through here last week. It was unbelievable and the pictures don't do it justice. The winds gusted up to 65 knots and were sustained at 35. The sand in the air wouldn't stop and got into everything. My sleeping tent was blown flat during the day and buried in sand. With help, I was able to dig it out (in the dark) and move it to the a space on the leeward side of group of vehicles. Other than the dust in the air, I slept pretty well that night.
On Sunday (30 March) I flew out to the British Division headquarters for a coordination and planning meeting. A picture of one of the helos coming into our landing zone to pick us up is attached. On the flight out, we saw some of the well fires and a fair amount of building rubble. I have since learned that the rubble we saw was created in the first Gulf War. The UK Division is located in an agricultural area and I saw some "real" trees - something I haven't seen for a long time. Don't misunderstand me - these trees might be considered tall shrubs in Nevada County but they really stand out around here.
http://www.theunion.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Site=TU&Date=20030403&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=104030054&Ref=AR