Please, God, help me go back to sleep.
JOSH’S JOURNAL ENTRIES
13 APRIL 2012
It’s my [26th] birthday today. It makes me miss home more. No patrols today. We keep getting intel about the Taliban trying to overrun our COP. I hope we are prepared for that.
14 APRIL 2012
Today started out like any other day. Joking around, thinking it’s going to be a good day. We were getting ready to go on ground lock. It was the first time I ever took the VC [vehicle commander]. We had three trucks total. In the first truck was Sgt. Derick Gamez, the driver, Private Dortch, PFC Eric Cress, and Private James Muma on the rear hatch. The second truck was SSG Murphy, SPC Williams, Private Anderson, PFC Victor Guevarra on rear hatch. The third truck contained me (VC), Sgt Bill Kearney (squad leader), PFC Kyle Peters and PFC Brent Buffington were on rear hatch, and PFC Jarraid “Hendo” Henderson was the driver. We were almost to our positions when I heard the boom from the lead truck that had just turned a corner around a wall. I knew they had gotten us again. The IED had hit the lead truck causing it to immediately burst into flames. Nobody saw it coming. Immediately we knew it was bad. We couldn’t see the truck from our position, but we knew. The black smoke told us it was really bad… Sgt. Gamez, one of the toughest guys I know came running to the second truck trying to get help. He grabbed a litter (a rescue gurney) off the second truck and started running back toward the explosion. I could tell by the way he was running that he was messed up. Then I heard “We have a casualty” over the radio. The second truck got out and cleared to the lead truck and started pulling people out. I saw Sgt Gamez and Private Muma dragging somebody to the second vehicle. It was the driver of the first truck. He was messed up bad. They put him on a litter and brought him to our truck. Immediately, I could smell burning flesh. His hands and face were black, he had a tourniquet on both legs, which looked completely charred from the fire. I later learned that Gamez and Muma actually pulled him out of the burning truck because the impact had broken both of his femurs.1
We drove back to the COP as fast as possible. When we got there the medics were ready.… The other truck pulled up and behind us and people started pouring out. Cress and Dortch both collapsed as soon as they got out. The impact of the explosion along with smoke inhalation caused them to almost pass out. We grabbed two more litters for them and ran them into the aid station. We left the burning lead truck behind with third platoon. Rounds were cooking off with the AT4 and LAW both exploding…
Usually I would be an emotional wreck, don’t get me wrong, I still teared up some, but today I wasn’t. Today was our platoon’s first casualty. The first time I have seen someone this messed up. It didn’t scare me. I’m not scared. I know I still have a mission I have to accomplish. Even though they were all messed up, they are alive and will be able to live normal lives. Our platoon still hasn’t had a death or an amputee. I’m sure it is coming soon, but right now I’m just going to thank God for his blessings.
18 APRIL 2012
I am starting to understand why this is the home of the Taliban. Not only is the desert a perfect place for transporting equipment, but the people also support the Taliban. They are very uneducated and easily intimidated by Taliban members. I was on ground lock with our interpreter today and I was talking to him about the locals. He said this is the first place he has been where the locals do not want to help us. I think the reason is because we do not help them enough. The Taliban can promise so much to these people like money, food, and protection. If the locals refuse to cooperate, they will just hurt their family in some awful way. I have also heard rumors that we will be out of Mushan in 90 days. That is going to upset a whole lot of people in our company. We don’t want to turn this place over so the Taliban can freely rule the area again. That defeats the whole purpose of what we are doing now. People feel like it’s so important to get out of this war, but when we do, it’s not going to be finished at all.
22 APRIL 2012
Today, 1st platoon almost got hit by an IED. They were on patrol when a command wire IED blew up right in front of them. Nobody was injured, but they didn’t find the detonation point.
We have a pretty full week ahead of us. Tomorrow, we have a patrol in Dohab. Then, tomorrow night we are going to support an ambush by the ANA. On Tuesday, we go straight to ground lock again. Wednesday, we have Force Pro classes all day. Thursday we go on a rather large patrol and it could be dangerous. We are going to Kanizay. This place is where bad things usually happen. It
