Explosives experts make impact in Iraqi community

[thedrifter]

Explosives experts make impact in Iraqi community
Submitted by: 24th MEU
Story Identification #: 2004730145954
Story by Staff Sgt. Demetrio J. Espinosa



FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq (July 27, 2004) -- Marine explosives specialists spend most of their time in Iraq disposing of improvised explosive devices that target U.S. forces. Occasionally, though, they can apply their skills in more direct service of Iraqi citizens.

Recently Marines from the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Detachment, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, had the opportunity to remove some of the remnants of the coalition’s war with the regime of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

“Our [executive officer] had been out to meet with a local sheik when it was brought to his attention that the sheik’s property contained possible unexploded ordnance,” said Warrant Officer Kerry T. Fryer, 24th MEU EOD Det. officer-in-charge and Apollo, Penn., native.

It wasn’t long before Fryer and his Marines were dispatched to the sheik’s home to remove what was thought to be unexploded ordnance.

At the site, members of Fryer’s team used several pieces of sensitive equipment to precisely locate the explosive. Once it was found, it was up to them to carefully uncover the ordnance and remove it. In this instance, it was important to remove.

“We came out here to take [the ordnance] out and bring it back so that some kid doesn’t come across it and get blown up,” said Fryer, who has served 17 years in the Marine Corps.

This time his team was lucky. They uncovered the empty shell of a 122-mm illumination mortar and removed it. Although the ordnance didn’t pose a danger, the Marine’s teamwork with locals will continue to reap benefits for both Marines and the Iraqi citizens here.

“Whenever we get together with community leaders, things like this come up, and we will do whatever we can to help them,” said Fryer.



A Marine with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit's Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit carefully clears dirt from a buried mortar shell.
The Marines were removing the ordnance to promote good will with the residents in their area of responsibility.
Photo by: SSgt. Demetrio J. Espinosa



An empty white phosphorous shell is uncovered in the field of a resident near Forward Operating Base Kalsu, Iraq.
Marines from the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit's Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit removed the shell to promote good will with the residents in their area of responsibility.
Photo by: SSgt. Demetrio J. Espinosa

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn20...5?opendocument

Ellie

[thedrifter]

U.S. military says 20 insurgents killed in Fallujah fighting

By: Associated Press -

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Fighting between insurgents and American-led forces in the volatile city of Fallujah has killed 20 militants, the military said Saturday.

A Fallujah hospital official, Dr. Salim Ibrahim, had said Friday that clashes, which had been reported on earlier, killed 13 Iraqis and wounded 14 others.

Many of those wounded, including at least one child, appeared to be civilians injured in U.S. airstrikes, he said, adding that he could not give an exact count of the dead, because many bodies had been torn apart in the bombings.


A U.S. military spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Saturday that the fighters were killed during clashes between 7:30 p.m. Thursday and 1 a.m. Friday.

Iraqi insurgents started the fighting Thursday by ambushing a patrol with gunfire, mortars and rocket propelled grenades before fleeing into buildings in the city, the military said.

The Marines responded with tank and artillery fire at the mortar positions, several hundred yards away, the military said. Iraqi insurgents fled into buildings, which the Marines targeted with airstrikes and artillery, the military said.

The fighting continued in an industrial area and 12 auto repair shops and two houses were destroyed. Witnesses reported hearing aircraft on bombing runs and scores of mortar rounds fired toward an American base.

At about 12:30 a.m. Friday, U.S. military aircraft attacked insurgents spotted in a building and four vehicles, the military said.

The Iraqi fighters responded with at least four explosive volleys, but U.S. forces, Iraqi National Guard troops and Iraqi police repelled the attacks, the military said.

There were no U.S. or Iraqi security forces casualties, the military said.

An injured man, lying in a bed at Fallujah General Hospital with his pants covered in blood, asked, "What was our fault?" according to Associated Press Television News. "My mother and sister were killed."

A medical worker bandaged a crying toddler's forehead that was covered with blood. "This is just a child ... does he look like a terrorist?" an angry man asked.

The Marines said they did everything possible to avert civilian casualties.

"Our forces go to extraordinary lengths to minimize the impact of military action upon civilians," Marines spokesman Lt. Col. T.V. Johnson told The Associated Press.

But when insurgents occupy residential areas, "they exponentially increase the risk for civilians," he said.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004..._547_30_04.txt


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Marines, insurgents clash near Fallujah





9 Iraqis killed as tanks, jets strike
By Rick Rogers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
July 30, 2004

FALLUJAH, Iraq – Insurgents attacked a Marine checkpoint outside Fallujah yesterday, setting off a firefight that quickly escalated as tanks, artillery and combat jets pounded targets within the city well into this morning.

One Camp Pendleton Marine was slightly wounded in the fiercest battle that Marines posted outside the insurgent-controlled city have seen since late June.

At least nine Iraqis were killed and 16 others injured, Dr. Ahmed Abdullah at Fallujah general hospital was quoted by Reuters as saying.

Black smoke rose from the city of 250,000 residents.

A man on a public address system called in Arabic for the residents of Fallujah to donate blood for the injured, according the Marines.

Civilian casualties could not be verified because the city is off limits to foreign journalists.

Fighting started about 6:30 p.m., when Golf Company Marines saw armed individuals near the U.S. checkpoint leading to Fallujah.

The Marines were about to open fire when the insurgents attacked with small arms, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars, said Capt. Jeff Stevenson, company commander for Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment from Camp Pendleton.

Marine tanks counterattacked, firing six to 12 rounds from their the main guns.

The fighting was heavy for several hours as thousands of tracers filled the sky.

Just after midnight, U.S. airstrikes pounded the city. Secondary explosions could be heard, possibly suggesting hits on weapon caches.

Sporadic fighting was heard early today.


http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/w...0falluja1.html


Ellie

[thedrifter]

July 29, 2004

Two Marines die in Anbar fighting

Associated Press


BAGHDAD, Iraq — Fighting between insurgents and U.S. forces west of Baghdad has killed two Marines, the military said in a statement Thursday. A Polish soldier was killed and three were wounded in a separate attack.
The two Marines died in clashes Wednesday in Anbar province, the statement said. The U.S. military had initially said two coalition troops were killed during heavy fighting Wednesday in the Anbar city of Ramadi, but it had declined to reveal their nationalities.

Multiple U.S. military camps in Ramadi came under mortar attack Wednesday and two U.S. helicopters made emergency landings after coming attack from small arms before returning their base, the military said.

The deaths of the two Marines takes the tally of U.S. personnel killed in Iraq to at least 908 since the war began, according to an Associated Press tally.

The Polish casualties came when the troops were hit by shrapnel from a booby trap set off by remote control, the Polish Defense Ministry said Thursday, according to Polish Radio Zet.

Defense Ministry spokeswoman Agnieszka Kucharska confirmed the casualties but said she had no further details on the incident, including exactly when it happened.

“One is dead and three are wounded,” Kucharska said.

The death raises the number of Polish troops killed in Iraq to seven.

Poland sent troops in support of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and now commands some 6,200 multinational troops in south-central Iraq from 16 countries, including 2,400 of its own.



http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/stor...925-280387.php


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Marine parents still reading bedtime stories in Iraq
Submitted by: I Marine Expeditionary Force
Story Identification #: 200472782134
Story by Lance Cpl. J.C. Guibord



CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq (July 27, 2004) -- For Marines and Sailors deployed to Iraq, the bright, red glow of a camcorder's record light takes the place of a nightlight when they read bedtime stories to their children.

Through the Family Literacy Program, a deployed parent has the opportunity to be filmed while reading a book to their child. A mini-DVD, which can be viewed in any DVD player, is then sent to the child.

The program, a collaborative effort between I Marine Expeditionary Force chaplains, the Armed Services YMCA and the Walt Disney Company, provides resources to forward-deployed Marines and Sailors that will aid the positive promotion of literacy.

"One of the most difficult parts about being an active-duty Marine is being away from the children," said Annette L. Conway, organizer of the Family Literacy Program and wife of I MEF Commanding General Lt. Gen. James T. Conway. "The program allows mom or dad to parent, to laugh with the child and to continue to educate the child, even from half a world away. Seeing and hearing dad keeps his love visible."

Many Marines and Sailors with I MEF have access to phones, but when a family can see the deployed parent or husband with their own eyes, it gives a special assurance of their safety, said Sgt. Michael A. Urteaga, the I MEF Headquarters Group legal chief.

"I did this for my daughter's 10th birthday," said the 28-year-old Ventura, Calif., native. "Because of deployments and training I've missed five of her birthdays. Now I don't have to completely miss this one."

Urteaga said he plans on doing videos for his two other children, including his 6-month-old daughter, who will see her father's face for the first time through the program.

The program is currently available to all Marines deployed to Iraq with I MEF. Chaplains from 1st Force Service Support Group, 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and MHG are providing the necessary supplies needed to make the video greetings possible for their Marines and Sailors.

"It's a rewarding experience to be in a situation to have an impact on (a) Marine's morale and livelihood," said Petty Officer 1st Class Johnnie L. Boyd, the I MHG chaplain's assistant.

"I wish so much that we had had the technology to have the program for our kids," said Conway.

The Conway family, however, did something similar, and witnessed the first-hand results.

"Jim taped stories and animal sounds for our two year old and three month old," said Conway. "When Jim got home, Brandon knew all the animal sounds, and Scott recognized his dad by his voice."



After reading to his daughter on tape, Sgt. Michael A. Urteaga, the I Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group legal chief and Ventura, Calif., native, concludes the recording by wishing her a happy 10th birthday and reminding her he will be home soon at the Camp Fallujah, Iraq, chapel July 23, 2004. The Family Literacy Program provides a unique opportunity for Marines and Sailors to stay connected with their children while deployed. (Official USMC photo by Lance Cpl. J.C. Guibord) Photo by: Lance Cpl. J.C. Guibord

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn20...6?opendocument


Ellie

[thedrifter]

Valor defined

Marines confront, overcome the crucible of Fallujah
By Rick Rogers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
July 31, 2004


FALLUJAH, Iraq – The citations for valor read like scenes from a movie, and it's only through cinematic comparisons that Cpl. Howard Lee Hampton Jr. can describe the combat his Camp Pendleton unit saw here in April.

"It was beyond anything in 'Black Hawk Down,' " said Hampton, 21, referring to the movie about the actual downing of two U.S. helicopters in 1993 Somalia and the harrowing rescue operation in which the lives of 18 American soldiers were lost.

"I remember going into the city in the (amphibious assault vehicle) and hearing the bullets hit off the sides.

"When the door opened, I thought about the scene in "Saving Private Ryan" when they were coming up to the beach and that guy got hit right in the head before he ever got to the beach," Hampton said, this time conjuring up the movie account of D-Day during World War II.

"Once we got in the city, we had hundreds and hundreds of people trying to kill us," said the native of El Paso, Tex., recalling how the cascade of enemy shell casings from windows above the Marines sounded like a never-ending slot machine payout.

"We survived in Fallujah because everyone put the Marine next to him ahead of themselves," said Hampton, an infantryman with Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment. "Everyone did so much more than they had to."

More than 50 Marines from Echo Company have been recognized for valor between March 18 and April 26, when they went into Fallujah to root out insurgents after four civilian contract workers were murdered and two of the bodies hanged from a bridge.

The battalion's Fox Company has recommended about 20 Marines for medals.

"My boys are superheroes," said Capt. D.A. Zembiec, the Echo company commander who climbed atop a tank while under fire to guide it to where his men were pinned down. "I got guys with two Purple Hearts still out here working."

Echo Company's role in the battle for Fallujah began April 6, when two platoons – about 80 men – were ordered into the northwest section of the city, launching a month of street-by-street fighting that would claim the lives of several hundred insurgents and an estimated 600 civilians.

As word of the violence spread, the media gathered for a closer look.

"One reporter said, 'It can't be that bad,' " recalled 1st Sgt. William Skiles, Echo Company's top enlisted man.

"Well," Skiles recalled, "the Armored Assault Vehicle had just stopped to let the media off when the first (assault rifle) rounds flew overhead. Then came the (rocket propelled grenades). There weren't a whole lot of stories filed that day because the reporters were face down in the dirt."

During the encounter, journalists often asked Skiles, 43, of San Juan Capistrano, for information for their reports about the fighting, but he thought they were missing something.

"I kept thinking: What about valor? Why weren't any of the reporters interested in the valor of our Marines?

"All anyone wants to write about is our dead and wounded," he said, thumbing through military papers that included nominations for Silver and Bronze stars.

Although only a few of the medal nominations have been approved so far, The San Diego Union-Tribune was allowed to review the submissions on condition that no detailed information be revealed.



NELVIN CEPEDA / Union-Tribune
Cpl. Howard Lee Hampton Jr. compared the insurgent assault his Camp Pendleton unit faced in the battle for Fallujah this spring to the violent D-Day landing scene in the movie "Saving Private Ryan." More than 50 Marines from Echo Company were recognized for bravery.



NELVIN CEPEDA / Union-Tribune
After braving enemy fire four times to evacuate wounded Marines, Petty Officer 3rd Class Jason "Doc" Duty received a medal nomination that reads, "As bullets impacted within inches of his head, Duty remained resolute in his mission."

All of the top medal nominations arose from a single day's action April 26.

It was also Echo Company's last day of heavy fighting in Fallujah before the Marines pulled out under a cease-fire that has created the current stalemate: Insurgents control the city, the Marines control the surrounding countryside.

The day started routinely when Marines searched a mosque that gunmen had been using to direct fire on the Americans.

Finding only shell-casings below the minaret windows overlooking their position, the Marines left the mosque and moved deeper into the city and occupied a few houses.

All was quiet until about 11 a.m., when insurgents killed one Marine and wounded 10 others in a coordinated attack that lasted three hours.

"The minaret that we had just cleared suddenly came alive with sniper fire," Skiles said. At the same time, the Marines in the houses were hit by grenades, rocket-propelled grenades and machine-gun fire from the roofs of adjoining houses.

Within minutes, 100 to 150 heavily armed insurgents attacked in waves. At times, the Marines and the enemy were only 25 yards apart.

The hardest hit Marines were on a rooftop where they were swarmed from three directions by insurgents throwing scores of grenades and firing at least 30 RPGs within the first 15 minutes of fighting. Thousands of bullets peppered the area.

Nine of the Marines were wounded almost immediately.

Aaron C. Austin and Carlos Gomez-Perez, both lance corporals, were on that rooftop and have been nominated for high honors, Austin posthumously.

After the initial barrage, Austin, a machine gunner, evacuated the wounded and then rallied the Marines to counter-attack.

"We've got to get back on the roof and get on that gun," Austin, from Sunray, Tex., is reported to have said, referring to a Marine machine gun.

The Marines returned fire, but as Austin started to throw a grenade, he was hit several times in the chest by machine gun fire.

Although morally wounded, Austin threw his grenade, which hit the enemy and halted their attack.

A memorial to him – a cement bench – sits outside the Echo Company barracks at Camp Baharia. Austin was 21.

Gomez-Perez was hit in the cheek and shoulder by machine gun fire while dragging a wounded comrade to safety.

"Ignoring his serious injuries . . . Gomez-Perez, in direct exposure to enemy fire, continued to throw grenades and fire four magazines from his M-16 rifle. Still under fire and with his injured arm, he and another Marine gave CPR (to Austin) and continued to fire on the enemy," read his medal nomination.

Gomez-Perez is recuperating stateside. His age and hometown weren't immediately available.

Marines at another house were also under heavy attack, and four were wounded.

Lance Cpl. John Flores, 21, from Temple City, held a key position outside the house protecting the left flank.

continued..........

[thedrifter]

"Around 11 a.m., I heard explosions and I remember a Marine scream," he recalled. "It was a scream I'll never forget, and I hope I never hear again. I had heard the scream before. It was the scream that someone was messed up. It scared me."

Flores said he traded fire with insurgents 20 yards away. When a Humvee arrived to get the wounded, Flores laid down hundreds of rounds of protective fire during a deafening exchange.

"As one of the corpsman ran to the house, bullets hit right behind him against a wall. Everyone said Doc Duty was faster than bullets that day," said Flores, who was twice wounded by shrapnel during the action.

"Doc" is Petty Officer 3rd Class Jason Duty, a 20-year-old Navy corpsman from New Concord, Ohio.

"Despite extreme personal danger from small arms fire and exploding ordnance, Flores remained in his tenuous position, delivering devastating fire on enemy forces as they attempted to reinforce their attack," his nomination stated.

When the Marines pulled back to a safer position later that day, Flores could have left the city to get medical treatment, but he didn't have the heart to leave his fellow Marines.

He doesn't like to think about Fallujah, though he is proud of what Echo Company did there.

"I think I did real good that day, but a lot of people did real good. I was scared, but I just did it," Flores said. "I think about what happened in the city and the people wounded and killed. We think about them a lot. No one from this company will ever forget what we did out here."

Lance Cpl. Craig Bell got mad when he was nearly killed by an enemy grenade. And then he got even.

"You know when they say that things slow down?" asked Bell, 20, from Del City, Okla. "That's what happened when I saw the grenade.

"It was a pineapple grenade with a cherry-red tip," Bell said. "I didn't think they even made grenades like that anymore. It was like something from a World War II movie."

Bell ducked behind a pigeon coop for cover.

He "heard explosions and shooting in real time" while he seemed to drift into space. "I watched the grenade for what seemed like forever until it went off . . . but I talked to Marines later and they said it all happened in a split second."

The blast wounded Bell in the right side and jump-started the clock.

"I thought, 'That's it!" said Bell, a grenadier. "I thought about my wife and daughter and not doing anything stupid. But I was just so angry that he had thrown a grenade at me that I didn't care. I was going to take someone out."

He grabbed ammunition for his grenade launcher and started blowing up rooms from which insurgents were firing, estimating he launched 100 rounds in about an hour.

Despite his wounds, Bell "expertly placed high-explosive around through the windows of adjacent buildings," reads his medal recommendation. "Without his brave actions, 2nd platoon would have been hard-pressed to hold their position and evacuate wounded Marines."

"I was proud to be a part of something so brave and so strong," Bell said. "I know what I did. I saved someone's life, and I know that what other people did saved me."

Not all of the heroics focused on the enemy.

The corpsman, Duty, and Sgt. Skiles were recognized for evacuating wounded Marines while exposed to unrelenting fire.

Duty braved enemy fire four times to load Marines into a Humvee driven by Skiles, who coordinated the rescue.

"I do remember thinking I was in trouble about the third trip because that's when the volume of fire increased a lot," Duty said.

"When we were loading the last guy, they chucked a hand grenade at our Humvee and it hit the hood. It rolled off and didn't explode. I think they were trying to throw it in the back where the wounded were being loaded."

Duty's medal nomination reads: "As bullets impacted within inches of his head, Duty remained resolute in his mission."

Skiles was lauded for evacuating the Marines and for his leadership in combat.

Part of his lengthy medal nomination states:

"Without his courage, his company would not have been able to evacuate his wounded in the expeditious manner – and more Marines would have been exposed to danger longer.

"Skiles' combat leadership is the metal weld that holds his company together during times of adversity."

It will be weeks, perhaps months, before the Marine Corps approves any decorations, especially the higher ones. By then, the Echo Company Marines probably will be back at Camp Pendleton.

And Hampton will be left with only his memories of what Echo Company did because as he'll tell you:

"They honestly cannot make a movie about what we went through. Every Marine did so much more than what they had to do, from the littlest private first class to the commanding officer. Everyone did so much more."




Union-Tribune staff writer Rick Rogers and staff photographer Nelvin Cepeda are accompanying Camp Pendleton-based Marines in Iraq.



NELVIN CEPEDA / Union-Tribune
When insurgents attacked Marines in a house, Lance Cpl. John Flores, 21, stood outside protecting the left flank. Wounded twice, Flores could have left for treatment, but he said he didn't have the heart to leave his fellow Marines.



NELVIN CEPEDA / Union-Tribune
Lance Cpl. Craig Bell said he was so angry after an enemy grenade nearly killed him in Fallujah that he grabbed rounds for his grenade launcher and began blowing up insurgent positions. He estimated that he launched 100 rounds in about an hour.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/m...1n31valor.html


Ellie

[thedrifter]

MWSS-273 places gravel at FOB for MEU
Submitted by: 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing
Story Identification #: 20047307467
Story by Sgt. J.L. Zimmer III



FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq (July 30, 2004) -- The Marines of Marine Wing Support Squadron 273, Marine Wing Support Group 37, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, have made landing here safer and easier, thanks to the arrival of more than 5,000 cubic feet of gravel.

According to Sgt. Francisco Uribe, ground support equipment non-commissioned officer-in-charge, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 261, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd MAW, using gravel increases landing visibility and offers more support for the squadron's CH-46E Sea Knight helicopters when they land.

"I was on one of the first (Marine Corps) aircraft to land (here) and it was pretty dusty, but because of the gravel we didn't brownout," said the 24-year-old Denver native. "Landing on gravel also helps (stabilize) the aircraft because when you land on sand, the (weight of the aircraft) causes it to sink and become a little unstable."

Uribe explained that a brownout is caused when the rotors of an aircraft whip-up loose dirt and creates a wall of dust in front of the aircraft as it lands, causing visibility problems for the pilots and aircrew.

"A brownout is one of the scariest things (to deal with) when we are landing in unfamiliar territory," he said. "If we can't see the ground, it's hard to tell where to land."

Capt. Shawn P. Miller, officer-in-charge, forward arming and refueling point, MWSS-273, said the gravel was a more suitable choice for the airfield here because of its effectiveness against brownout.

"Gravel is a permanent dust abatement solution," said the 36-year-old Detroit native. "We will use a light dusting of tri-Pam to minimize the dust on top of the gravel, but other than that, (the airfield) will be gravel."

Tri-Pam, a mixture of aluminum chlorohydrate, polyacrylamide and a super-absorbent substance, was tested in 2003 and has been used at several FOB's and FARPS during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

According to Miller, gravel is also the preferred method of dust abatement for some of the larger rotary-wing aircraft landing here because of its ability to maintain its consistency.

"The gravel provides more stability for the (CH53-E Sea Knight) when it lands," he said. "It is four inches thick when it is laid out, but once the Marines compact it, it will sink about two inches. This will keep it from easily dispersing."

The gravel project here is being completed by the Marines of MWSS-273, but will be utilized by the Marines of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

"Our mission is to get this airfield ready for the incoming MEU," he added. "They will need it ready when they (arrive here) so they can immediately begin their air missions."

Sgt. Jamie R. Jenkins, collateral duty and quality assurance representative, HMM-261, mentioned that construction gravel also helps lessen the amount of maintenance that has to be performed on the aircraft that land on it.

"Since the gravel has been laid (here), it has minimized the amount of erosion on the interior parts of the engines and the (engine air particle separator), which in turn has minimized the amount of work for the Marines (who repair the aircraft)," said the 23-year-old Bear Grass, N.C., native and senior maintenance NCO for HMM-261.

"Now when we take the aircraft into their maintenance phase, the less dust inside the engine the less (foreign objects and debris) there is to clean out," he continued. "This also extends the life of these (aging) aircraft."



Cpl. Michael R. Inot, expeditionary airfield technician, Marine Wing Support Squadron 273, Marine Wing Support Group 37, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, sprays water onto a specially treated four-inch layer of gravel that will serve as the airfield at Forward Operating Base Kalsu, Iraq, July 14. Inot, a 21-year-old Hartford, N.Y., native, has worked at this FOB for more than three weeks preparing the airfield for the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Photo by: Sgt. J.L. Zimmer III

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn20...7?opendocument


Ellie

[thedrifter]

La Pine soldier gets Silver Star

Published: July 31, 2004

By Ernestine Bousquet

The Bulletin

LA PINE — If Marine 1st Lt. Nick Horton had his way, only his family and close friends would know he received the Silver Star, the military's third highest honor, for his actions in the war with Iraq.

But to his family in La Pine, the medal is recognition of a young man who leads by example — a Marine who safely shepherded others through battle.

To Horton, now a 25-year-old first lieutenant with the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, the medal directs unnecessary attention to what he sees as an act of duty.

"I thought I did the same job that everyone else did," Horton said. "When you get in the fighting, your training kicks in and you're ready for it."

After serving two tours in Iraq and seeing his best friend die in combat, Horton attributes his survival to the leaders who trained him and the Marines he fought beside. He just returned from Iraq two weeks ago after serving since March.

But in a quiet ceremony among his peers at Camp Pendleton this week, Horton accepted the medal for "his bold leadership, outstanding judgment and complete dedication to duty" during a battle on April 10, 2003, as his citation letter states.

As 3rd platoon commander for Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines at the time, Horton was part of a convoy heading into Baghdad to launch an attack on a palace where Saddam Hussein was supposedly holed up.

When his commander's vehicle broke down, his platoon got separated from the rest of the battalion. After fixing the vehicle, Alpha Company hit a dead end on a bridge when it entered Baghdad. Then shots came from both sides of the road, assaulting the platoon with a barrage of fire.

"It was eerily quiet. Then everything broke out from there," Horton said. "As soon the shooting starts, your heart starts beating more and you're getting a little antsy."

Seeing a cutoff, Horton took over, leading the company out of danger and onto the palace, which had been secured by the rest of the battalion by then. Horton's platoon went on to take part in an attack on a mosque, another possible Hussein location.

When they arrived, enemy combatants bombarded them with rocket propelled grenades and machine gun fire. A blast pierced his armored vehicle a foot between where Horton and four Marines sat, leaving a nickel-sized hole that went unnoticed until after the skirmish ended, Horton said.

Horton led two platoons around to the backside of the mosque. While his company commander was leading an attack outside the mosque, Horton, who as a second lieutenant was the senior officer, directed squad leaders and about 60 Marines while they seized the mosque and captured 20 enemy combatants and their weapons, he said.

"The whole day was probably one of the most chaotic days you can imagine," Horton said. "There were a lot of bullets flying through the air, both friendly and enemy."

Only one Marine was killed that day out of a battalion of more than 1,000 men and women. In Horton's platoon, four Marines were injured by shrapnel from the rocket propelled grenades. And four enemy terrorists were killed during Horton's charge inside the mosque.

When Horton told his parents about the events in a 2 a.m. call the next month, he described it as the most intense day of his life, but gave no details.

It was only after he came home in May of 2003 that his dad, Era, and his mom, Toni, started to get snippets of what he experienced.

"It made me super proud, but as a parent, I thought ‘Wow, he could have been killed,' " said Era Horton, a fire training coordinator for the state. "I came to realize that Nick had been in an awesome fight. There was a good chance this was a fight for survival."

Toni Horton, a marketing coordinator, was relieved that she didn't know the extent of what her middle child went through until he received the Silver Star, which came more than a year after the attack.

"It's an honor for Nick and, of course, we're proud," Toni said. "But it isn't just about one person and I think that's why Nick is so humble about it."

Her son has always been a natural leader and taken his obligations seriously, Toni Horton said.

Through it all, Nick Horton has kept his sense of humor, Toni Horton said, as she showed off handmade postcards that he made from his care package boxes.

On one, Nick Horton sketched a drawing of his favorite cartoon character, Calvin from "Calvin and Hobbes," eating mystery chow. He titled it "A Part of Life in Iraq." A second postcard described his second tour in Iraq as "Spring Break 2004."

These postcards are framed and hang on the wall at Toni and Era's house — pieces of war that Nick Horton has shared with his parents.

And when he comes home to see his family, fish with his brother and camp with his friends, Nick Horton's Silver Star medal and citation letter may end up in the war gallery alongside his other mementos.

"I'm smart enough to realize it's a pretty significant award," Nick Horton said. "It just hasn't hit me yet."

Echoing what a fellow soldier told him, he added, "The hardest part is living up to the expectations of it."

Ernestine Bousquet can be reached at 541-504-2336 or at ebousquet@bendbulletin.com.

http://www.bendbulletin.com/news/sto...story_no=14052

Ellie