Marines train to navigate IEDs

[thedrifter]

Marines train to navigate IEDs
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February 24, 2009 - 6:04 PM
MOLLY K. DEWITT

Complacency kills.

That's the lesson more than 30 Marines with the 2nd Marine Logistics Group learned Monday and Tuesday as they received training in the detection of and reaction to improvised explosive devices.

The Marines spent Monday in the classroom going over techniques, tactics and procedures for dealing with IEDs while on convoys and then hit the road Tuesday to put those techniques to the test.

"We try to base it as close as we can to what's currently happening," said Gene Pollock, contractor with the Engineering Center of Excellence, part of the Joint IED Defeat Organization. "We try to keep it as realistic as possible; some of the stuff we put out there has actually been recovered from theater."

During the hands-on exercise the Marines mounted up in Humvees and convoyed down a dirt road that had been set up with various suspicious items such as IED pressure plates and tires rigged with simulated IEDs that produced both smoke and the more than 100 decibel sound of an explosion.

Recognizing an IED or spotting suspicious items while on convoys is crucial to the safety and security of the convoy. Items that seem harmless, such as a piece of paper or wood by the side of the road, can spell trouble.

"A lot of times it's the little things that will get you vice the big things," Pollock said. "Not noticing a little wire sticking out somewhere can mean the difference between life and death."

IEDs and snipers are among the leading killers of coalition forces in the war on terror, Pollock said.

Cpl. Jeffrey Purcell, with 2nd Supply Battalion, said he expects the training to be useful in upcoming deployments.

"It saves people's lives and it teaches you what you're actually looking for over there," Purcell said. "If we're doing convoy operations over there it's going to be an everyday thing."

Cpl. Gary King II, with 2nd Supply Battalion, who deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2007, said the hands-on IED training better prepares Marines for what to expect on upcoming deployments.

"It is our job to provide security for the cargo we have to take base to base," he said. "So we have to be the first ones to spot (an IED)."

Knowing how to spot a potential IED and react to the situation provides confidence to the Marines as well as valuable knowledge prior to deployment.

"Without that confidence it's just that much harder," he said. "I feel it's my job to ensure they learn as much as they can before they go over there ... so they can do their jobs and come home safe."

The Marines faced three scenarios throughout the day and following each scenario received a debriefing on things that went right and things that could be improved.

The training gave Lance Cpl. Charles Warren, also with 2nd Supply Battalion, peace of mind.

"It prepares you very well for (deployment). I know more what's been going on," he said. "It makes it really realistic to know where it's coming from and it just helps us react to it."

While the threat of IEDs has decreased in the past few years, Pollock said the training these Marines went through can still save lives.

"They're still out there," he said. "It's still a threat out there."

Contact Jacksonville/Onslow government reporter Molly DeWitt at 910-219-8455 or mdewitt@freedomenc.com.

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Lejeune Marines Train to Diffuse IED Dangers

By Philip Jones
Reporter
Published: February 24, 2009

Our troops serving overseas face a number of dangers on a daily basis.

But one that we hear about more often that others is the risk posed by deadly improvised explosive devices—or IEDs.

Tuesday, Nine On Your Side’s Philip Jones got a behind-the-scenes look at how Marines from Camp Lejeune are training to detect IEDs and decrease the dangers they pose:

It’s a situation Marines could find themselves in at any moment in Iraq or Afghanistan—cruising in a convoy down a dirt road when the sound of an explosion rings out.

But instead of living through that nightmare, Marines from the 2nd Marine Logistics Group who provide convoy security are learning how to avoid trouble at Camp Lejeune.

“We try to keep it as realistic as possible, right down to the kind of stuff they’re going to see out there as far as indicators,” said instructor Gene Pollock.

Pollock says an indicator could be something visual like a trip wire laying in a road.

And even though a piece of paper just looks like roadside garbage—believe it or not, it could be concealing an explosive device.

To protect the integrity of the tactics they’re using, instructors here have asked us not to describe everything these Marines do when they identify a threat.

But their work starts with securing the area once they identify a problem.

And these Marines say it’s realistic training.

“You’re confident that you’re gonna be able to go out there, do your job and make sure that the Marines in your convoy and the cargo gets to its destination,” said Cpl. Gary King II. “Without that confidence, it would make things that much harder.”

Cpl. King has deployed before and knows the difference this training could make.

And he understands why these instructors are sweating the small stuff.

“In this environment, not noticing a wire sticking out of somewhere could mean the difference between life and death,” Pollock said.

Instructors say some of the devices and visual elements they use in this training actually came from the battlefield.

They say it’s all part of their efforts to make the environment seem as realistic as possible.

Ellie