This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Army News

  • The last moments of Specialist Hilda Clayton’s life

    The last moments of Specialist Hilda Clayton’s life

    Fox News reports that Army has released a series of photos which chronicled the last moments of the life of 22-year-old Specialist Hilda Clayton, an Army Public Affairs photographer, when a mortar tube exploded as she was taking pictures of the firing drill. She was killed along with four Afghans on July 2, 2013.

    Since her death, Clayton’s name has since been added to the Defense Information School Hall of Heroes at Fort Meade. The award for the winner of Combat Camera’s annual competition was also named after her

    From Stars & Stripes;

    Clayton was a member of the Army’s storied combat camera unit, the Fort Meade, Md.-based 55th Signal Company, which has deployed soldiers to front lines across the globe.

    She was the first Army combat documentation and production specialist to be killed in Afghanistan.

    The unit has named its annual competition the SPC Hilda I. Clayton Best Combat Camera (COMCAM) Competition in her memory.

    Her name is also etched into the Hall of Heroes at the Defense Information School in Fort Meade, where she graduated in 2012.

  • Pigs To Join Bomb Detection Units

    Pigs, Pen, Portrait, Livestock, Barn

    In an effort to relieve some of the pressure on working dogs in bomb-detection units, the US Army has announced that it will employ a sounder of trained truffle-sniffing hogs to detect roadside and mid-road homemade IEDs.

    Since pigs are renowned for their refined sense of smell, particularly in the search for a favorite delicacy of les Crapeauds, a small sounder of young pigs will be chosen for this honorable employment within the next few weeks. As is well-known to any truffle hunter in Provence, pigs are widely-known for their ability to detect that buried treasure, no matter how deep it may be. They are, in fact, considered to be much better at it than dogs, partly because their flat, shovel-like snouts can get to the root of the problem and detect the distinct differences in scent between oak roots and the horse-manurelike scent of the black truffle, a rare, highly-sought after and prized fungus which can fetch up to $1200 per pound.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/10/truffle-2500-australia-ted-smith_n_5571053.html

    There have been trials in Israel, and while successfully completed, the reluctance of most Israelis to accept pork in their midst, per kosher dietary laws, has made it difficult to bring a full-blown pig bomb detection unit into effect.

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/1443312/Taboo-or-not-taboo-Pigs-that-sniff-landmines-pose-dilemma-for-Israel.html

    There is some concern that the pigs may set off an IED if they detect it, but the cost of training a pig to find a bomb is reduced by their extreme intelligence, their willingness to please, their very rapid growth rate, and the fact that they will work for Snickers and candy corn as rewards for finding an object.  Replacement cost is also a consideration, with the market rate for live pigs going as low as $65 a head.

    However, should a pig be injured or killed in the line of duty, not only will they be fondly remembered as impressive four-legged heroes named Mayo, Ham or Peanut, but the little porkers will also provide a welcome change of diet for the troops.

  • Brooke Army Medical Center closes unsterile operating rooms

    Mark sends us a link to an article about Brooke Army Medical Center closing 16 of their 28 operating rooms because “human matter” was discovered on their instruments after improper sterilization.

    The hospital, which has treated thousands of troops from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, did not directly say whether dirty instruments led to infections, noting that Army rules prevent such disclosure. One commander, Dr. Douglas Soderdahl, a colonel, said that “there’s no concerning spikes or things going in the wrong direction” regarding BAMC’s medical care.

    BAMC, which disclosed the problem in an April 21 briefing with several hundred doctors and other medical personnel, wouldn’t confirm the number of cases but acknowledged the sterilization problem and closure of operating rooms. A physician familiar with the meeting provided the numbers to the San Antonio Express-News and said the hospital also recorded 24 cases of improperly processed surgical sets in December and 14 in September.

    […]

    “I think you would be hard-pressed to find a facility in the U.S. that has not had that issue. Enough people die every single day because of medical errors to fill a 747,” [Weston “Hank” Balch, director of sterile processing operations at San Antonio’s University Health System] said.

    “Everyone does it” is a perfectly acceptable excuse.

  • 1LT Weston C. Lee passes

    1LT Weston C. Lee passes

    The Department of Defense reports that the soldier killed in Mosul was Weston C. Lee according to the Fayetteville Observer;

    Lee’s death was announced Sunday, a day after officials first reported that a service member was killed by an explosive device outside of Mosul.

    The paratrooper, 25, of Bluffton, Georgia, was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne infantry Regiment, part of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.

    His brigade commander, Col. J. Patrick Work, said Lee was an extraordinary young man and officer.

    “He was exactly the type of leader that our paratroopers deserve,” Work said in a statement issued from Iraq. “Our sincere condolences and prayers are with his family and friends during this difficult time.”

    Lee was the first 82nd Airborne Division paratrooper to be killed in combat since 2014. He was the first All American paratrooper to be killed in Iraq since 2011.

    […]

    He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the Meritorious Service Medal.

    Red Falcon!

  • Friendly fire isn’t

    Friendly fire isn’t

    The other day we mentioned that two US servicemembers were killed during operations in Afghanistan, ABC News reports that the pair of Rangers might have been killed in a friendly fire incident;

    Sgt. Joshua P. Rodgers, 22, of Bloomington, Illinois and Sgt. Cameron H. Thomas, 23, of Kettering, Ohio, both of the Army’s elite [3rd Battalion] 75th Ranger Regiment, were killed in the raid Thursday. A third Ranger received a head wound and remained with his unit.

    Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, confirmed Friday that their families have been informed that their deaths may have been caused from friendly fire.

    According to Davis, the raid targeted a compound housing Abdul Hasib, the ISIS Emir in Afghanistan. It is suspected, though not confirmed, that the ISIS leader was among the 35 ISIS fighters killed in the raid.

    That’s the problem of being in the lead of an operation – both sides are shooting in your direction. They were involved in a joint operation with our Afghan allies, so it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that they were shot by folks who weren’t paying attention where they were sending lead.

  • Major General James Grazioplene charged with rape

    Major General James Grazioplene charged with rape

    Devtun sends us a link to the USAToday which reports that the Army has announced that, even though he retired in 2005, Major General James Grazioplene faces six charges of rape of a minor which happened in the 1980s;

    The charges against Grazioplene carry the potential for life in prison and loss of pension, said Don Christensen, president of Protect our Defenders, an advocacy organization for victims of sexual assault in the military.

    Christensen, the former top Air Force prosecutor, said the next step is for Grazioplene to face an Article 32 hearing, which will determine if Grazioplene’s case goes to court martial.

    Grazioplene, who lives in Gainesville, Va., joined the Army in March 1972 as an armor officer. He was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., a Ranger and was decorated for his service.

    There are no plans to call him back to active duty to face the charges.

  • Army specialist Jeremy Tomlin passes

    Army specialist Jeremy Tomlin passes

    We mentioned the hard landing that a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter made the other day in Leonardtown, Maryland. 22-year-old Army specialist Jeremy Tomlin was killed in that golf course landing near Washington, DC according to the Department of Defense.

    Spc. Jeremy Darrell Tomlin, 22, a UH-60 crew chief assigned to the 12th Aviation Battalion originally from Chapel Hill, Tennessee died at the scene.

    Tomlin was pronounced dead at 1:34 p.m., by a St. Mary’s County first responder.

    Chief Warrant Officer Christopher Nicholas, a pilot, and Capt. Terikazu Onoda, Charlie Company commander, were injured in the incident. Both are listed in critical condition at the University of Maryland R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, Baltimore, Maryland.

    The Associated Press talked to Jeremy’s family;

    “Jeremy loved to hunt and fish,” grandfather Ronnie Tomlin said. “Growing up, he never caused anyone trouble. All he wanted to do was play video games. He was just an average kid.”

    Tomlin, the helicopter’s crew chief, grew up in the Chapel Hill, Tennessee, area. He was assigned to the 12th Aviation Battalion and stationed at Davison Airfield in Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

    He started playing video games at age 3 or 4, Jenny Tomlin said.

    After graduating from high school in Unionville and turning 18, he headed off. He married his high school sweetheart, Jessica, before shipping off to Germany and they spent two years there, Jenny Tomlin said.

    “He loved working on those helicopters and he loved flying,” Ronnie Tomlin said. When Jeremy Tomlin spoke to his grandfather recently, he said he was interested in getting into special operations.

    Training for war is as deadly as war.

  • Human Rights Campaign opposes Mark Green

    Human Rights Campaign opposes Mark Green

    The Human Rights Campaign emailed us yesterday to make sure that we know that they oppose the appointment of Mark Green to the position of the Army Secretary;

    In a new video released today, HRC calls on Senators to #StopMarkGreen, Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of the Army. Green built his political career on hateful attacks against LGBTQ people and is a danger to every LGBTQ soldier bravely serving our country. Green encouraged the state of Tennessee to deny marriage licenses to same-sex couples after the Supreme Court ruled in Oberfell v. Hodges, characterized being transgender as a “disease,” and supports license to discriminate laws that target LGBTQ people.

    In his first public statement since being nominated, Green attempted to dismiss his disgraceful attacks against the LGBTQ community as just “politics.” Our service members deserve better and HRC is urging senators to stand up to #StopMarkGreen.

    Here’s their little video;

    I’m not sure that I agree that an Army Secretary’s most important qualification is support for the politics of sexual deviancy. I’d rather he fight our nation’s war efficiently – everything else is just so much bullshit, but after eight years of bullshit, I guess HRC is confused about priorities.