Scariest Day of My Life

I was in the Army National Guard for about 13 years. During those years, I had many different adventures, including two trips to the litter box the rest of the world calls Iraq.

During my time there, we were in constant danger from rockets and mortars. Nearly every day, we would have to stop what we were doing, and find a fortified shelter to protect us from the these incoming explosives.

Around every two weeks, someone would launch a VERY big mortar from across the river. Our problem with this, other than the fact that this person was launching artillery at us, was that they were doing it from inside a village and it was across the river. So, we couldn't launch back, and it wasn't in our Area of Operations. All we could do was track where it came from, and let the unit to the north of us know about it.

There were a couple of things that REALLY bothered me about this.

Within a month of us arriving at the base, the army decided it would be a grand idea to construct a 75 foot tower right outside of my office. With a big red flashing light on it. They did this to have somewhere to put a couple of cameras, and the light was to keep the helicopters from hitting it. All it really did was show where the bad guys to shoot. They knew the Operations Center was there, and now they had an aiming stake. So much so, that the longer we waited to get this guy, the closer he was getting to hitting our building. First it was about a kilometer to the north, then a few hundred meters to the south, then to the north again, then hit the softball field (100 meters south of the OC).

The Giant Aiming Stake

One day, it finally came to a head.

I was sitting in the office, and had a hankering for a cigarette. I usually had a smoke out on the back porch, but recently, they told me not to smoke there, because it was too close to the doors, and it annoyed the non smokers. We're in a combat zone, and they're worried about second hand smoke. So, I was going around the north side of the building, where they couldn't see me.

This day, before I went for a smoke, I decided to use my Battle Captain's computer, and check my email. I hadn't heard from my dad in a week or so, and decided to write him one to let him know that I was ok.

Suddenly, there was a very loud boom, and I was thrown from my chair. After a few seconds of confusion, we figured out that there had been a mortar strike, and it was REALLY close. Black smoke started filling the office, and we realized that it was closer than we thought. Right outside our window.

The guy across the river had finally hit home, and launched a mortar directly into a communications humvee right next to where I was going to smoke. I'll say that again. RIGHT NEXT TO WHERE I WAS GOING TO SMOKE 5 MINUTES PRIOR.

There were 3 guys in the hummer, and one of them had shrapnel wounds to his back. His buddies brought him into our office, and since I was the only one there with any kind of medial training, I started taking care of him. One of my fellow analysts came from another office, and we both patched him up. Then, I went back to work. They made most of us leave, and set up a separate OC. In the meantime, I answered the radio, and basically did my job. When the LTC told me to leave, I refused. I still had work to do.

Guess where I was? Right where that smoke is blowing into the building.

After an hour or so, they had completely moved the OC and I had finished my work. So, I left, and went out the other side of the building for a smoke, even though I had been breathing that black shit for an hour. I think I just wanted to get outside so nobody else could see me have the shakes and almost break down crying. Ok, I did cry. Who wouldn't?

Later on, I found out something very interesting.

I had thought that me hitting the floor was just a reaction to the explosion. As it turns out, a piece of shrapnel 3 inches long, 2 inches wide and an inch and a half thick flew through 3 pieces of 1/2 in plywood, and embedded itself in the chair on which I was sitting.

So, If I had gone outside for a smoke five minutes earlier, I might have died.

If that chair had been turned 1/4 of a turn, I might have died.

If I had stayed any longer in that smoke filled room, I might have died.

Basically, I'm lucky to be alive right now. It took about 3 years before I told any of my friends about this, or even my dad.