We had an interesting briefing the other morning. I have heard about a big dam just north of Mosul. I think it comes off one of the tributaries of the Tigris River, which is about a mile or two east of here. Well, I have heard that the dam is not the most reliable structure. Apparently, when it was built many, many moons ago, they used gypsum at it base. They say that gypsum is not the most reliable substance for the dam. So the Army Corp of Engineers are working on shoreing it up somehow. Our base is downstream from that dam. The CSH is on the low side of the base. The other side, the Marez side, is higher up. The Corp of Engineers have moved their headquarters to one of the highest areas on the Marez side. If the dam breaks, they tell us we have about an hour before our hospital is 20 feet under water. That would make this place look like New Orleans after Katrina. So we practiced drills today, moving patients out and evacuating. The Corp tells us that the dam is fine and they are just taking precautionary measures to restore it. I am still a little puzzled that if we are fine, then why did they move their office to higher ground? Maybe I should request an ark for my next care package just in case.
We get a security briefing once a week. I can’t tell you much because then I would have to kill all of you. But, they did show some interesting photos. It wasn’t the good stuff like you see in People or US magazines. It was photos of bad guys smuggling things in from the border by horseback. These guys are not dumb. Apparently, the main roads are fairly well covered, so they are resorting to whatever means are available. The good thing is that there is only so much you can sneak in on horseback. But still, you can sneak in enough to still do some damage. So it does show that the enemy is getting a bit desperate. It also shows that we definitely can’t trust the neighboring countries where they harbor the insurgents.
I decided it is time for me to brag a little. Twice year we have to take a PFT (Physical Fitness Test). Even though we are in a combat zone, we still have to follow regulations. Part of the test is to run 2 miles under a certain time, standardized for your age. There is this one young medic, 22y/o, who is a bit impressed with himself. So he was shooting off his mouth just before the run. Most of these kids don’t know how to pace themselves. So he takes off like a bat out of hell and he is way out in front at the 1 mile marker, which is the turnaround point. One of the other docs, Rob (ER doc, younger, 38 y/o, active runner) and I decide to show him a lesson. So during the second mile, we close the gap and soon, Rob passes him. This was ok because Rob is known to be an active runner. About 10 or 15 seconds later, I catch up to him and pass him. At the finish line, I was about 30 seconds ahead of him, and Rob was about a minute ahead of him. Of course, back in the EMT, everyone was riding him to no end, telling him how 2 old guys beat him. I believe he could have beaten me if he would learn to pace himself and maybe practice running a little bit once in a while. He wants a rematch but I told him it would have to be within the next 2 weeks. After that, I hope to be flying out to visit Mike.
The picture is from the helicopter group. They are called “Dustoffs”. They are named after one of their pilots who had previously flown many missions, picking up wounded soldiers from areas no other pilots could reach. I think this was Viet Nam, but I am not exactly sure.
Tom
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