By Air Force Tech. Sgt Kati Garcia CJTF-HOA Public Affairs
CAMP LEMIONER, Djibouti – U.S. Soldiers raced to the aid of several injured Djiboutians following a vehicle rollover accident here June 24th. Members of Charlie and Bravo Combat Search and Rescue platoons, 2nd Battalion, 18th Field Artillery Regiment, were in a five-vehicle convoy returning from a day of weapons training at a firing range. Not long after their convoy reached the highway, the Soldiers witnessed a dump truck veer off the paved road and then overturn.
There were roughly 60 Soldiers at the scene as the accident occurred. “Everyone reacted very quickly and there was no hesitation,” said Sgt. 1st Class James Gallup, Charlie CSAR platoon leader. “The Soldiers took charge of the scene and provided medical aid to the injured. There were other Soldiers who helped direct traffic, preventing further accidents and still others who kept the onlookers from crowding the site.
“I was very impressed with the rapid response and the teamwork from everyone involved,” Gallup went on to say.
Witnesses said there were five people in the dirt-filled truck, three in the cab and two in the bed. One of the men in the back of the truck was thrown clear of the vehicle but the other became trapped under the mound of soil he had been standing on.
“Immediately, our guys were working to dig the man out,” said Staff Sgt. Jason Liptak, Charlie platoon’s squad leader. “I saw the truck roll and thought there was no way anyone in the back survived. But our Soldiers worked quickly and had him freed almost immediately.”
Spc. Brandon Melrose, a combat medic with Bravo battery, ran to the scene looking to help the most critically injured victims. He immediately set to work stabilizing the man who had become trapped under the dirt and debris while his fellow soldiers assessed the injuries of the others.
While there were three Army medics on the scene, they were not the only ones to provide assistance. All members of the 2-18 FAR received some form of combat lifesaving training and several were able to put those skills to use.
After rendering first aid, several of the U.S. Soldiers rushed the most severally injured man to a nearby French Foreign Legion Post where he was then transported to a local hospital by ambulance.
“We’re in an area with no 9-1-1 or emergency call system,” said Sgt. Richard Hardy, joint CSAR security team leader. “With no medevacs and no means of contacting help, we knew we had to be the ones to get him some assistance.”
The remaining crash victims suffered injuries ranging from minor cuts to bruises and abrasions. “Today, months and months of training and rehearsals paid off in a huge way. You can train for any type of emergency situation you want, but the true measure of a Solider is shown when Soldiers can act without hesitation or prompting and do their jobs,” said Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Taylor, Bravo CSAR platoon leader. “I am very proud of my Soldiers and how they reacted to a bad situation, potentially saving a man’s life.”
Hardy said his CLS helped him immensely during the emergency. And he stressed the need for all Soldiers to be proficient in their first aid techniques and familiar with the equipment in their CLS packs.
The Soldiers from 2-18 FAR are deployed to Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa from Ft. Sill, Okla. They are expected to serve 15 months in the eastern African region providing CSAR support and force protection for the more than 2,000 U.S. military forces assigned to the region.
Source: HOA – CENTCOM.
Photos by: Air Force Tech Sgt. Katherine Garcia.
Cross-posted @ Rosemary’s Thoughts.
May you walk with the LORD always, and when you cannot take another step, may He carry you the rest of the way until you can walk along side Him again.
Today I am having a Linkfest party for all my friends, they ones I know and they ones I will come to know. If you have a post you would like to share with more people, why not trackpost it here? All you have to do is add my Permalink somewhere in your article (usually at the bottom), then trackback to it. You don’t have trackbacks available? Why not use Wizbang Stand Alone Trackback Everyone have a nice day.
Friends I have trackbacked today through Linkfest and others:
View From The Ridge – “A Leader God Has Blessed Us With At This Time!”
Mark My Words – Stem cells, minus the embryo?
Leaning Straight Up – Obama picks a fairly un-fresh VP, tells Hillary to keep the ‘change’.
Conservative Cat – A Whole Day of Journalists Going Nuts and We End Up With Biden.
The Amboy Times- Exclusive: Biden’s VP Interview.
Mark My Words – New product at Mark My Words online store.
Mark My Words – “That’s a storybook man!”
Friends who have shared their posts for your reading pleasure:
6. Planck’s Constant: Russian Invasion of Georgia and Deja Vu.
I blame the Russian invasion on Liberal idiots who have so demoralized this country that Russia now thinks it can do anything it wants because we have no stomach to defend our allies…
8. 123beta: Firefox 3.01: Faster Javascript.
Video comparing Firefox 3.0 and 3.01.Trackposted to , The Virtuous Republic, Political Byline, Democrat=Socialist, CORSARI D’ITALIA, Conservative Cat, and The World According to Carl, thanks to Linkfe…
Thanks for the post and kind welcome!
Tell me more about what you are doing here….
–Tom
God bless our troops!:)
If you read what is right under the title of this blog, that is basically what I cover. I am trying to bring forth that information about the good works our troops are doing but the media refuses to print because it isn’t bleeding. I also write personal stuff sometimes, such as prayer requests, repentences, and the such. I express my opinion on just about everything, and I try to be a voice for those people who are under tyrants so they have no voice. Also, people who live under sharia law have no right to freedom of speech, especially if they are ladies.
I guess you could say I try to write about what the media is too lazy to write about. I like reading my blogging friends (and I’ve met more people blogging than I ever have!), but I don’t usually write about the same thing. Why? They already have, and they do it well. What I will do in this case is lead others to their sites. That is why I really like the Open Trackback parties. 😉
Hey Lady! How are you? Yes, God bless them abundantly. 😉
[…] 23 August 2008 by Rosemary I am going to have an Open Trackback Party for something I posted yesterday: US Soldiers Use CLS Skills To Aid Crash Victims. […]
Russian Invasion of Georgia and Deja Vu…
I blame the Russian invasion on Liberal idiots who have so demoralized this country that Russia now thinks it can do anything it wants because we have no stomach to defend our allies….
Thanks, Rosemary!
No matter where one stands on current war in Iraq, it is so important to publicize the bravery and decency of our troops…..keep up the good work!
Firefox 3.01: Faster Javascript…
Video comparing Firefox 3.0 and 3.01.Trackposted to , The Virtuous Republic, Political Byline, Democrat=Socialist, CORSARI D’ITALIA, Conservative Cat, and The World According to Carl, thanks to Linkfe……
Just saw my name and picture up on the site thought i would say hello. only reason i found this site is because of how we cure bordem with laughs of what comes up when you google your name well this came up.