By Chris Murphy
81ST BDE – IRAQ
BALAD, Iraq - June 22 was a day I'll never forget. The week before it, six long-range rockets hit the base here - Camp Anaconda, about 50 miles north of Baghdad - and one of them hit the PX, killing two soldiers and wounding 25 others. I had a feeling something else bad was going to happen.
It's one of the hardest things to deal with: knowing that incoming rockets and mortars come in on a regular basis. I've learned to deal with it, though, just like everyone else around here. Sometimes we don't even hear the boom; all we hear is the alarm going off to tell us to get to hardened shelter. But what I saw and what happened on June 22 will be something much harder for all of us here to deal with.
The day started off with a 3 a.m. wakeup. No one had gotten much sleep because they didn't put the mission out until 11 the previous night. So at best most of us slept only four hours. This wouldn't have been too much of a problem because this sort of thing happens a lot. But usually we would only go out and do mounted patrols and area coverage. On this day we were walking through about eight different places. It was way too big of an area to cover on foot with just two squads. We were at the first site around 5 a.m. Everyone who was going on the foot patrol dismounted from the vehicles. Since I'm a driver, I usually have to sit with the vehicle. I did for an hour or two, and when we met up with the group the lieutenant - Andre Tyson of Riverside - decided to switch me out with another specialist. I didn't mind too much. I actually wanted to go stomping through the terrain. I also carried the mine detector, along with my M203 [grenade launcher] and all my grenades. The areas we walked through were densely vegetated. The ground wasn't flat, and there were small canals every 25 feet. We're walking through brush neck high, trying to keep our footing and hoping our next step doesn't land us in a canal.
"It's like being in Vietnam" was the running joke. After an hour and a half of searching this area we finally got out of the "jungle." It was at this point where we linked up with a platoon of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps (ICDC). They're the new Iraqi Army that we've been training. I've heard on the news that they're more than ready to take over after we're gone.
But from what I've seen, that news couldn't be more wrong.
For the two weeks leading up to June 22, our "off" days had been spent babysitting the ICDC and giving them some training. As if we didn't have enough to do already. But on this day, they were going to be patrolling with us.
Up until now, my squad and another squad were sticking close together. Since each squad had a radio and we could cover more area, Lt. Tyson split us up.
He sent the first squad back through the "jungle" and then it was to head east along the Tigris River. We headed south towards the Tigris. This area wasn't much better. It was tall grass, dried wheat fields and big spiky weeds. I don't know which terrain was worse. We ended up marching through some farmers' crops. We linked up with the vehicles to get resupplied on water and to get a little food in us. By now it was 10:30 a.m. It had been go, go, go since 5 this morning with no breakfast.
It was getting hot, and my squad leader, Staff Sgt. Sarla, had already come down with heat exhaustion. Specialist Patrick Ryan McCaffrey gave him an IV bag. McCaffrey, from Tracy, is a combat lifesaver, whose job is to help a victim until a medic arrives. Meanwhile, our medic, PFC Woodbury, treated another member of our group for a mild case of heat exhaustion. I talked with medics later and they said they should've ended the mission right there.
They took Sarla back to base and switched out the other heat stroke victim with Spc. Hemmelright, who was a gunner in first squad's humvee. We only got a 20-minute break and then it was back on again. So now it's myself, Lt. Tyson, Spc. McCaffrey (who was carrying the radio), Spc. Camaya, Sgt. Antonio, Spc. Hemmelright, Spc. Ulen and about 12 ICDC along with an interpreter.
We headed southeast towards a town. We walked across large dirt clumps for awhile and then came to a stop and circled around the lieutenant. The ICDC wanted to know why we were out walking around; they didn't think there was anything here. Of course, they were talking through the interpreter and all the questions and gripes were aimed at the lieutenant.
Lt. Tyson explained to them that we had to search these areas for caches of rockets, mortars, weapons or anything else that they might be hiding. He said they wouldn't be in these open areas and that we were going to search where it was more dense to the southeast where some tall palm trees were. From here the lieutenant decided to split us up. One group would go north towards the town and the other would head into the dense area towards the palms.
I wasn't sure which group to go with; I stopped and looked at Lt. Tyson. He looked at me as if he were going to tell me to come along with him. He didn't say anything so I went with Camaya, Ulen and Antonio along with some of the ICDC towards the town. Lt. Tyson, McCaffrey, Hemmelright and the rest of the ICDC went southeast towards the palm trees.
We were supposed to meet back up where the palm trees were. I remember McCaffrey saying (and he said this a lot): "This is b-------, man. They're not going to stop pushing us until someone gets hurt or killed. Then maybe they'll let up." That was the last thing I remember him saying.
As my group headed towards the town, I could still see the other group, and they were still heading towards the trees. We then went east along the right side of the road. We started making our way off the road into the fields where we were to link up with the other group. We were all wondering why the lieutenant split us up like this. Our group didn't even have a radio. It didn't make any sense, but a lot of the things we undertake rarely do.
We came to a wall and started yelling for Lt. Tyson and the other group. We asked a farmer if she had seen any other Americans in the area. She said she saw some walking towards the town. I didn't think it was the other group. They shouldn't have been walking back that way.
Besides, we had already covered that area. Soon after that we heard some automatic fire, followed by some single shots. At first I thought it was the police shooting off their guns or an attack on the police station. We knew it came from the police station. We all got on our knees and looked in the direction of the fire. Some more single shots went off. From the way it sounded, I knew it was an M16.
Then I saw a bunch of Humvees speeding towards the police station. We decided to get back on the road and go back towards the police station. After a while I knew something bad had happened and we started to run. I ran through some vehicles and saw McCaffrey on the ground. He was all pale and almost green. He wasn't moving and his eyes were wide open.
I rushed to pull his mine detector equipment off and throw it in a truck. From what I saw, he didn't look good and was shot up pretty bad. I didn't see much bleeding, but I saw a large wound in his leg and in his stomach. Ulen, Antonio, Camaya and the driver of the five-ton truck lifted Mac up onto the vehicle.
I got on the radio trying to tell the task force what was going on. It was total chaos. I didn't see the lieutenant or Hemmelright anywhere. I was wondering why it was just Mac. I grabbed a weapon and a bloody Kevlar helmet I saw lying on the ground and threw it in the truck. Ulen started CPR on McCaffrey in the back of the five-ton while Camaya and Antonio were holding pressure to the wounds. I was directly behind the five-ton while we were escorting them back to base. I had to watch them try to bring Mac back to life while speeding back to base. From the way he looked, I didn't think he was going to make it.
Then we had to return to the police station to get the rest of the vehicles and the ICDC. This whole time I'm trying to stay focused and not break down. A million questions are going through my head. Why did the lieutenant split us up? What if I had gone with that group?
I'm trying to hear what is going on over the radio. The reason I didn't see the lieutenant or Hemmelright is because they had already been evacuated from the scene before I got there. The Kevlar I threw in the back was the lieutenant's. I found out that he was shot in the back of the head twice. He probably died almost instantly. I looked at the helmet and knew it was his.
He got hit right under where the helmet stops. I also found out that Hemmelright was wounded, but he was going to be OK. I guess he took four shots to the body armor and one got him in the ass. By now, the entire task force was out and there were Humvees and tanks everywhere surrounding the town. There were vehicle checkpoints on the main roads to inspect all vehicles.
I guess three of the ICDC are missing, and there is some confusion as to whether or not they did it. The captain got the names of the three ICDC and we headed to the town where they supposedly lived to talk to the sheik to find out where exactly they lived. I'm not exactly sure what was said because after he talked to the sheik we went back to the police station.
By this time it is confirmed that Lt. Tyson and Spc. McCaffrey are KIA - killed in action - and SPC. Hemmelright is in critical condition. It's just sad that it had to be Mac. No matter how strong he was or how tough he was, he couldn't stop all the bullets that hit him. McCaffrey was hit on both sides of his body where there was no protection from the body armor. There was nothing the medics could do for either of them. Mac had too much internal bleeding and Lt. Tyson had a serious head wound. It was an ambush, plain and simple.
When we came back in we dropped the ICDC off at their camp and searched all of them because Mac's watch was still missing. Antonio said that he had thrown it in the back of the five-ton. We weren't able to find the watch.
There were a lot of sad faces and folks crying. We could all finally break down. Sgt. Maj. Menard said to go back to the headquarters tent and that the chaplain would be over. We went back to the tent and tried collecting ourselves. Later that night the task force went to the airfield and stood on each side of the plane as they loaded McCaffrey and Lt. Tyson. It's going to be hard for those of us that were close to these individuals. McCaffrey was in my squad and was a good friend of mine. I spent a lot of time with Lt. Tyson since I was his driver.
We still have to keep on fighting and continue the mission. We still have at least nine more months here. I can only take it day by day here. June 22 was definitely the worst. I hope no more will have to die. It looks like it's going to get worse before it will get better.
But what is done is done, and there is no going back. I just pray for the families that have lost their loved ones and for the soldiers here who lost their friends. And I know these friends are in a better place.
Soldiers for the Truth.org
81ST BDE – IRAQ
BALAD, Iraq - June 22 was a day I'll never forget. The week before it, six long-range rockets hit the base here - Camp Anaconda, about 50 miles north of Baghdad - and one of them hit the PX, killing two soldiers and wounding 25 others. I had a feeling something else bad was going to happen.
It's one of the hardest things to deal with: knowing that incoming rockets and mortars come in on a regular basis. I've learned to deal with it, though, just like everyone else around here. Sometimes we don't even hear the boom; all we hear is the alarm going off to tell us to get to hardened shelter. But what I saw and what happened on June 22 will be something much harder for all of us here to deal with.
The day started off with a 3 a.m. wakeup. No one had gotten much sleep because they didn't put the mission out until 11 the previous night. So at best most of us slept only four hours. This wouldn't have been too much of a problem because this sort of thing happens a lot. But usually we would only go out and do mounted patrols and area coverage. On this day we were walking through about eight different places. It was way too big of an area to cover on foot with just two squads. We were at the first site around 5 a.m. Everyone who was going on the foot patrol dismounted from the vehicles. Since I'm a driver, I usually have to sit with the vehicle. I did for an hour or two, and when we met up with the group the lieutenant - Andre Tyson of Riverside - decided to switch me out with another specialist. I didn't mind too much. I actually wanted to go stomping through the terrain. I also carried the mine detector, along with my M203 [grenade launcher] and all my grenades. The areas we walked through were densely vegetated. The ground wasn't flat, and there were small canals every 25 feet. We're walking through brush neck high, trying to keep our footing and hoping our next step doesn't land us in a canal.
"It's like being in Vietnam" was the running joke. After an hour and a half of searching this area we finally got out of the "jungle." It was at this point where we linked up with a platoon of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps (ICDC). They're the new Iraqi Army that we've been training. I've heard on the news that they're more than ready to take over after we're gone.
But from what I've seen, that news couldn't be more wrong.
For the two weeks leading up to June 22, our "off" days had been spent babysitting the ICDC and giving them some training. As if we didn't have enough to do already. But on this day, they were going to be patrolling with us.
Up until now, my squad and another squad were sticking close together. Since each squad had a radio and we could cover more area, Lt. Tyson split us up.
He sent the first squad back through the "jungle" and then it was to head east along the Tigris River. We headed south towards the Tigris. This area wasn't much better. It was tall grass, dried wheat fields and big spiky weeds. I don't know which terrain was worse. We ended up marching through some farmers' crops. We linked up with the vehicles to get resupplied on water and to get a little food in us. By now it was 10:30 a.m. It had been go, go, go since 5 this morning with no breakfast.
It was getting hot, and my squad leader, Staff Sgt. Sarla, had already come down with heat exhaustion. Specialist Patrick Ryan McCaffrey gave him an IV bag. McCaffrey, from Tracy, is a combat lifesaver, whose job is to help a victim until a medic arrives. Meanwhile, our medic, PFC Woodbury, treated another member of our group for a mild case of heat exhaustion. I talked with medics later and they said they should've ended the mission right there.
They took Sarla back to base and switched out the other heat stroke victim with Spc. Hemmelright, who was a gunner in first squad's humvee. We only got a 20-minute break and then it was back on again. So now it's myself, Lt. Tyson, Spc. McCaffrey (who was carrying the radio), Spc. Camaya, Sgt. Antonio, Spc. Hemmelright, Spc. Ulen and about 12 ICDC along with an interpreter.
We headed southeast towards a town. We walked across large dirt clumps for awhile and then came to a stop and circled around the lieutenant. The ICDC wanted to know why we were out walking around; they didn't think there was anything here. Of course, they were talking through the interpreter and all the questions and gripes were aimed at the lieutenant.
Lt. Tyson explained to them that we had to search these areas for caches of rockets, mortars, weapons or anything else that they might be hiding. He said they wouldn't be in these open areas and that we were going to search where it was more dense to the southeast where some tall palm trees were. From here the lieutenant decided to split us up. One group would go north towards the town and the other would head into the dense area towards the palms.
I wasn't sure which group to go with; I stopped and looked at Lt. Tyson. He looked at me as if he were going to tell me to come along with him. He didn't say anything so I went with Camaya, Ulen and Antonio along with some of the ICDC towards the town. Lt. Tyson, McCaffrey, Hemmelright and the rest of the ICDC went southeast towards the palm trees.
We were supposed to meet back up where the palm trees were. I remember McCaffrey saying (and he said this a lot): "This is b-------, man. They're not going to stop pushing us until someone gets hurt or killed. Then maybe they'll let up." That was the last thing I remember him saying.
As my group headed towards the town, I could still see the other group, and they were still heading towards the trees. We then went east along the right side of the road. We started making our way off the road into the fields where we were to link up with the other group. We were all wondering why the lieutenant split us up like this. Our group didn't even have a radio. It didn't make any sense, but a lot of the things we undertake rarely do.
We came to a wall and started yelling for Lt. Tyson and the other group. We asked a farmer if she had seen any other Americans in the area. She said she saw some walking towards the town. I didn't think it was the other group. They shouldn't have been walking back that way.
Besides, we had already covered that area. Soon after that we heard some automatic fire, followed by some single shots. At first I thought it was the police shooting off their guns or an attack on the police station. We knew it came from the police station. We all got on our knees and looked in the direction of the fire. Some more single shots went off. From the way it sounded, I knew it was an M16.
Then I saw a bunch of Humvees speeding towards the police station. We decided to get back on the road and go back towards the police station. After a while I knew something bad had happened and we started to run. I ran through some vehicles and saw McCaffrey on the ground. He was all pale and almost green. He wasn't moving and his eyes were wide open.
I rushed to pull his mine detector equipment off and throw it in a truck. From what I saw, he didn't look good and was shot up pretty bad. I didn't see much bleeding, but I saw a large wound in his leg and in his stomach. Ulen, Antonio, Camaya and the driver of the five-ton truck lifted Mac up onto the vehicle.
I got on the radio trying to tell the task force what was going on. It was total chaos. I didn't see the lieutenant or Hemmelright anywhere. I was wondering why it was just Mac. I grabbed a weapon and a bloody Kevlar helmet I saw lying on the ground and threw it in the truck. Ulen started CPR on McCaffrey in the back of the five-ton while Camaya and Antonio were holding pressure to the wounds. I was directly behind the five-ton while we were escorting them back to base. I had to watch them try to bring Mac back to life while speeding back to base. From the way he looked, I didn't think he was going to make it.
Then we had to return to the police station to get the rest of the vehicles and the ICDC. This whole time I'm trying to stay focused and not break down. A million questions are going through my head. Why did the lieutenant split us up? What if I had gone with that group?
I'm trying to hear what is going on over the radio. The reason I didn't see the lieutenant or Hemmelright is because they had already been evacuated from the scene before I got there. The Kevlar I threw in the back was the lieutenant's. I found out that he was shot in the back of the head twice. He probably died almost instantly. I looked at the helmet and knew it was his.
He got hit right under where the helmet stops. I also found out that Hemmelright was wounded, but he was going to be OK. I guess he took four shots to the body armor and one got him in the ass. By now, the entire task force was out and there were Humvees and tanks everywhere surrounding the town. There were vehicle checkpoints on the main roads to inspect all vehicles.
I guess three of the ICDC are missing, and there is some confusion as to whether or not they did it. The captain got the names of the three ICDC and we headed to the town where they supposedly lived to talk to the sheik to find out where exactly they lived. I'm not exactly sure what was said because after he talked to the sheik we went back to the police station.
By this time it is confirmed that Lt. Tyson and Spc. McCaffrey are KIA - killed in action - and SPC. Hemmelright is in critical condition. It's just sad that it had to be Mac. No matter how strong he was or how tough he was, he couldn't stop all the bullets that hit him. McCaffrey was hit on both sides of his body where there was no protection from the body armor. There was nothing the medics could do for either of them. Mac had too much internal bleeding and Lt. Tyson had a serious head wound. It was an ambush, plain and simple.
When we came back in we dropped the ICDC off at their camp and searched all of them because Mac's watch was still missing. Antonio said that he had thrown it in the back of the five-ton. We weren't able to find the watch.
There were a lot of sad faces and folks crying. We could all finally break down. Sgt. Maj. Menard said to go back to the headquarters tent and that the chaplain would be over. We went back to the tent and tried collecting ourselves. Later that night the task force went to the airfield and stood on each side of the plane as they loaded McCaffrey and Lt. Tyson. It's going to be hard for those of us that were close to these individuals. McCaffrey was in my squad and was a good friend of mine. I spent a lot of time with Lt. Tyson since I was his driver.
We still have to keep on fighting and continue the mission. We still have at least nine more months here. I can only take it day by day here. June 22 was definitely the worst. I hope no more will have to die. It looks like it's going to get worse before it will get better.
But what is done is done, and there is no going back. I just pray for the families that have lost their loved ones and for the soldiers here who lost their friends. And I know these friends are in a better place.
Soldiers for the Truth.org
