ok this is now on the news...
Info on the happenings from last night in Iraq (LSA Dogwood)......this is a letter from Tony's CPT......our calling tree was alerted 9:30 p.m. last night....
words travel fast....I have not heard it on the news...maybe you will in the States...
Love, Barbara
I had hoped to tell you first, but I'm sure word about last night has already reached someone in Babenhausen. The Ammunition Holding area (where we store all the ammo
that is picked up on our missions) somehow went up in flames. Practically everything there exploded, creating spectacular bursts of flame in the distance. Thank
goodness we were at least 4km away. No one was injured here (when it started to explode), we moved everyone safely behind some very large burms, where we stayed
until the blasts subsided, which was about 11pm. There were, however, many units positioned much closer to the ammo site, and I just hope everyone is alright.
So our ammo mission has been cancelled today while everyone takes a step back and decides where future pickups will be stored. What can I say about these soldiers! Every day I'm
amazed at their camaraderie and dedication while completing this mission in 100+ temperature. I told them again yesterday morning how proud I am to be a part of this battery. It's
unbelievable! We have absolutely no bad soldiers. And they keep me motivated out here! Some changes have taken place recently. The JVB mission at the palace now requires fewer
soldiers so some from our battery (and the others as well) will come down here to join TF Bullet. Also, some soldiers will leave Kuwait 10-15 June to give us a hand here. TF Bullet is
without a doubt the most important mission here. I think it hit home last night when they realized that those explosions could have occurred in a highly populated area of Baghdad
(where most of them were picked up) causing many injuries or deaths. I would say that our soldiers definitely have one of the most important missions in Iraq. Lawlessness will not
subside until these huge caches of ammunition and weapons are not accessible to the Iraqi thugs still lingering about.
Please send my sincere congratulations to our new mothers out there. It's so wonderful. I'm just sorry that their husbands couldn't be there to provide the love and support during such
a special time, something that most civilian workers take for granted. I will tell you that they desperately wanted to be there show their love, but unfortunately sometimes soldiers must
make tremendous sacrifices for our nation's safety. This just happens to be one of those times.
Mail is still not working the way it should. And calls are extremely difficult to make. Why it was easier to get through during the actual war, I'll never understand. But please be patient.
I've tried 3-4 times in the past month to get through, unsuccessfully. It is a frustrating process...dialing the same number over and over and over, only to get a busy tone. The strangest
thing is that the next soldier in line will get through on the first attempt. So if there is some worry as to why one person is being called more than another, don't just assume that it's
because one soldier loves his wife more than the other. It's very hit and miss out here, and a source of much frustration for our soldiers. Especially when they get a nasty letter stating
that so and so is being called more often than the letter writer.
I have no idea what the latest rumor out there is ref our redeployment, but I've heard soldiers claim that we're flying home sometime in July. Please realize that probably the earliest we'd
return to Germany is late August. And nothing is concrete yet. Please be patient and realize that we're doing everything possible to get out of here, which is one of the reasons that
we're pushing so hard to rid this city of the ammunition and weapons. The sooner our mission here is done, the sooner someone much higher ranking than I will say we can go home.
Please let me know if there's anything else you'd like more information about.
Matt Mastick
