thedrifter
06-17-06, 07:11 AM
June 16, 2006
MLG's new CG awards four Purple Heart Medals
by Cpl. Matthew K. Hacker
2nd Marine Logistics Group
MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (June 9, 2006) -- Brigadier Gen. James A. Kessler, commanding general, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, attended his first awards ceremony since his arrival in May. During the ceremony, outside the 2nd Military Police Battalion barracks, he pinned the Purple Heart Medal on four Marines who were injured in Iraq.
All military policemen with Company A, 2nd Military Police Battalion, 2nd MLG, Staff Sgt. Steven M. Rowe of Charleston, W. Va., Sgt. Jeremy T. Webb of Milo, Maine, Cpl Anthony A. Immekus of Jefferson Hills, Pa., and Cpl. Nicholas T. Fenezia of Red Bank, N.J., were the recipients.
Although all but two of the Marines were injured at separate times and locations, all four stood proud, shoulder to shoulder as they received their medals.
Rowe and Immekus were conducting a patrol mission, escorting Brig. Gen. John E. Wissler, previous commanding general, from Cap Taqaddum to Camp Fallujah. As they traveled through Baharia, the lead scout vehicle noticed a suspicious, Yukon-sized Sports Utility Vehicle parked a few meters off the road.
They stopped beyond the unmarked vehicle as the second scout vehicle parked behind it.
Rowe, the assistant machine-gunner for the lead vehicle, exited and made his way toward the possible threat. At the same time, Immekus, the vehicle commander for the second scout vehicle, did the same.
Rowe stopped about eight meters from the car and knelt down to check out the underside.
"I was more toward the front, and Rowe was coming at it from the rear," said Immekus. "Rowe saw a wire running off the road and into desert, but before he could turn to tell anyone the vehicle exploded."
The blast threw him to the ground and instantaneously disoriented him. When he snapped out of it he began yelling, "Command detonated! Command detonated!"
The last thing I remember is seeing the back windshield being spider-webbed," Immekus continued. "Then I looked into the desert to look for someone and that's when it blew."
Immekus, who was roughly 25 meters from the vehicle when it exploded, was hit with several pieces of shrapnel, making it near impossible to walk. Rowe was also hit with shrapnel, which prohibited from searching the area for a possible spotter.
"Everything went white," said Immekus. "I couldn't see, I couldn't hear and my leg was in extreme pain, so I hobbled my way to the back of the Humvee and collapsed. Later I found out the reason I couldn't walk was because the tendons in my hamstring were cut with shrapnel.
Rowe laid there on the road, bleeding and scanning the area with his eyes and his rifle ensuring the safety of his Marines.
A few Marines and the corpsman tried to sustain the bleeding of Immekus' leg, Rowe remained on the road, waiting for them to finish and get him to a safe location.
When he was, the Marines ran over and brought him back to the corpsman, although Rowe refused medical treatment until the patrol arrived at Camp Fallujah.
Immekus was evacuated to Camp Taqaddum, where the shrapnel was surgically removed from his legs.
On another patrol, Webb's squad was on the way back to Taqaddum when they stopped to assist an Army convoy recovering from an improvised explosive device attack.
As patrol leader, Webb instructed his Marines to put out the fire and establish a security cordon around the disabled vehicle. Webb also sent his corpsman to tend to their wounded.
Once the cordon was in place, they began to sweep the area for additional IEDs.
During this sweep, another device exploded only a few meters away from Webb and another Marine.
Webb was knocked down, but only sustained a cut on his face, so he ignored it and attended to the other Marine who had been right next to the device when it detonated.
Despite the traumatic experience, Webb was managed to get the injured Marine stable and he had the patrol moving again in 15 minutes.
Webb was treated for lacerations and abrasions after returning to Camp Taqaddum.
Fenezia, and lance corporal at the time, was the team leader for a security patrol and was in the lead vehicle, so he was responsible for ensuring the roads were cleared of threats.
Everything seemed fine, and Fenezia did not see anything in the darkness, when suddenly a buried IED detonated underneath his vehicle.
"I got knocked unconscious from the explosion," said Fenezia. "When I finally came to and opened my eyes I still couldn't see too much because the windshield was black with oil. I couldn't hear too much initially, but I do remember hearing everybody screaming. After I regained enough strength to move around, I pried open the door and went to check on everyone."
Realizing the vehicle was completely totaled, Fenezia exited and made sure the rest of his Marines were safe.
It was extremely dark and he could not see anything, so Fenezia fired an illumination cluster into the sky to light up the area, hoping he could see the assailant.
After searching the area, he saw nothing.
Soon after the explosion, the patrol corpsman arrived and made Fenezia sit down while he attended to the long laceration on his left calf he sustained during the explosion.
Fenezia also had several pieces of shrapnel inside of him that could not be attended to until returning to base.
No matter which one of these Marines you talk to, all four of them will say they were just doing their jobs and that personal sacrifices need to be made to get it done. They feel honored to receive the Purple Heart Medal, but do not consider themselves above others who have not.
"It's a great honor," Immekus said. "But I feel more remorse for the people who have lost a limb or didn't make it at all. I consider myself lucky. They deserve more credit than I do.
Ellie
MLG's new CG awards four Purple Heart Medals
by Cpl. Matthew K. Hacker
2nd Marine Logistics Group
MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (June 9, 2006) -- Brigadier Gen. James A. Kessler, commanding general, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, attended his first awards ceremony since his arrival in May. During the ceremony, outside the 2nd Military Police Battalion barracks, he pinned the Purple Heart Medal on four Marines who were injured in Iraq.
All military policemen with Company A, 2nd Military Police Battalion, 2nd MLG, Staff Sgt. Steven M. Rowe of Charleston, W. Va., Sgt. Jeremy T. Webb of Milo, Maine, Cpl Anthony A. Immekus of Jefferson Hills, Pa., and Cpl. Nicholas T. Fenezia of Red Bank, N.J., were the recipients.
Although all but two of the Marines were injured at separate times and locations, all four stood proud, shoulder to shoulder as they received their medals.
Rowe and Immekus were conducting a patrol mission, escorting Brig. Gen. John E. Wissler, previous commanding general, from Cap Taqaddum to Camp Fallujah. As they traveled through Baharia, the lead scout vehicle noticed a suspicious, Yukon-sized Sports Utility Vehicle parked a few meters off the road.
They stopped beyond the unmarked vehicle as the second scout vehicle parked behind it.
Rowe, the assistant machine-gunner for the lead vehicle, exited and made his way toward the possible threat. At the same time, Immekus, the vehicle commander for the second scout vehicle, did the same.
Rowe stopped about eight meters from the car and knelt down to check out the underside.
"I was more toward the front, and Rowe was coming at it from the rear," said Immekus. "Rowe saw a wire running off the road and into desert, but before he could turn to tell anyone the vehicle exploded."
The blast threw him to the ground and instantaneously disoriented him. When he snapped out of it he began yelling, "Command detonated! Command detonated!"
The last thing I remember is seeing the back windshield being spider-webbed," Immekus continued. "Then I looked into the desert to look for someone and that's when it blew."
Immekus, who was roughly 25 meters from the vehicle when it exploded, was hit with several pieces of shrapnel, making it near impossible to walk. Rowe was also hit with shrapnel, which prohibited from searching the area for a possible spotter.
"Everything went white," said Immekus. "I couldn't see, I couldn't hear and my leg was in extreme pain, so I hobbled my way to the back of the Humvee and collapsed. Later I found out the reason I couldn't walk was because the tendons in my hamstring were cut with shrapnel.
Rowe laid there on the road, bleeding and scanning the area with his eyes and his rifle ensuring the safety of his Marines.
A few Marines and the corpsman tried to sustain the bleeding of Immekus' leg, Rowe remained on the road, waiting for them to finish and get him to a safe location.
When he was, the Marines ran over and brought him back to the corpsman, although Rowe refused medical treatment until the patrol arrived at Camp Fallujah.
Immekus was evacuated to Camp Taqaddum, where the shrapnel was surgically removed from his legs.
On another patrol, Webb's squad was on the way back to Taqaddum when they stopped to assist an Army convoy recovering from an improvised explosive device attack.
As patrol leader, Webb instructed his Marines to put out the fire and establish a security cordon around the disabled vehicle. Webb also sent his corpsman to tend to their wounded.
Once the cordon was in place, they began to sweep the area for additional IEDs.
During this sweep, another device exploded only a few meters away from Webb and another Marine.
Webb was knocked down, but only sustained a cut on his face, so he ignored it and attended to the other Marine who had been right next to the device when it detonated.
Despite the traumatic experience, Webb was managed to get the injured Marine stable and he had the patrol moving again in 15 minutes.
Webb was treated for lacerations and abrasions after returning to Camp Taqaddum.
Fenezia, and lance corporal at the time, was the team leader for a security patrol and was in the lead vehicle, so he was responsible for ensuring the roads were cleared of threats.
Everything seemed fine, and Fenezia did not see anything in the darkness, when suddenly a buried IED detonated underneath his vehicle.
"I got knocked unconscious from the explosion," said Fenezia. "When I finally came to and opened my eyes I still couldn't see too much because the windshield was black with oil. I couldn't hear too much initially, but I do remember hearing everybody screaming. After I regained enough strength to move around, I pried open the door and went to check on everyone."
Realizing the vehicle was completely totaled, Fenezia exited and made sure the rest of his Marines were safe.
It was extremely dark and he could not see anything, so Fenezia fired an illumination cluster into the sky to light up the area, hoping he could see the assailant.
After searching the area, he saw nothing.
Soon after the explosion, the patrol corpsman arrived and made Fenezia sit down while he attended to the long laceration on his left calf he sustained during the explosion.
Fenezia also had several pieces of shrapnel inside of him that could not be attended to until returning to base.
No matter which one of these Marines you talk to, all four of them will say they were just doing their jobs and that personal sacrifices need to be made to get it done. They feel honored to receive the Purple Heart Medal, but do not consider themselves above others who have not.
"It's a great honor," Immekus said. "But I feel more remorse for the people who have lost a limb or didn't make it at all. I consider myself lucky. They deserve more credit than I do.
Ellie