| DAN'S IRAQ JOURNAL |
The following are some excerpts from a journal kept by and
way of life for a soldier deployed in Baghdad, Iraq:
March 29, 2004
This morning we did some first aid training. It is stuff that we have done about 20
times and could do blindfolded if we had to. I guess that is why we do it so when the
time comes we just act and don’t think. So far we have been here for two weeks
and they still don’t know when we will be moving up north. I think that is the worst
part, not knowing.
way of life for a soldier deployed in Baghdad, Iraq:
March 29, 2004
This morning we did some first aid training. It is stuff that we have done about 20
times and could do blindfolded if we had to. I guess that is why we do it so when the
time comes we just act and don’t think. So far we have been here for two weeks
and they still don’t know when we will be moving up north. I think that is the worst
part, not knowing.
Cavalry Division announced in August 2003 that it would deploy to the CENTCOM AOR in early 2004. The division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team will begin deploying in January, followed by the remainder of the division. Joining the division in this rotation is the 39th Enhanced Separate Infantry Brigade. The deployment is expected to last one year. The transition of authority to the 1st Cavalry Division, based at Fort Hood, Texas, was a long process. Officials from the 1st Cavalry Division visited their counterparts in Baghdad, and 1st Armored Division personnel began sending information to Fort Hood. The cavalry division went through training at Fort Hood, the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif., and the Joint National Training Center at Fort Polk, La., before deploying. By March of 2004, troopers stayed in Camp New York for only a few days, while part of the division waits for its vehicles and equipment to convoy to Baghdad. To stay cool, the Soldiers temporarily living in the camp stay in air- conditioned tents and sleep on cots in huge bay-like areas. The tents also have lighting and electricity. About a quarter-mile away from the sleeping quarters, Soldiers can clean up in the shower trailer with warm-running water. Although there is running water, there are not any sewers and using the facilities includes locking the door to the port-a-john. On 15 April 2004 Task Force Baghdad, made up mostly of the 1st Cavalry Division, assumed responsibility for Baghdad and its environs from the 1st Armored Division. |
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