Striker's discover life in the trauma lane

Photo By Spc. Paul Harris | Spc. Crystal Gonzales, medic, Company C, 64th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, uses the fireman carry to evacuate a fellow Soldier twice her size off the battlefield during a trauma exercise at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, Calif.  

FORT IRWIN, CA, UNITED STATES

05.30.2007

Story by Spc. Paul Harris 

3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division

FORT IRWIN, Calif. – "I do not want any Americans to be hurt because they are here to help us. I like them here," said Litfee Mamsur, deputy mayor of Medina Wasl, after an improvised explosive device ripped through the main street of his town.

Medina Wasl is the fictitious Iraqi town at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, Calif., where medics from 64th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, reacted to the IED and provided aid to the town's people. The town's residents are made up of actors who can speak Arabic and it is up to the medics not only to provide treatment but also decide who is friend or foe.

"First thing is you have to stop the bleeding and get the patient out of there ASAP," said Pfc. Won Lee, health care specialist, Company C, 64th BSB, about the patients he saw after arriving on scene.

Lee was one of the first medics to arrive and was faced with an assortment of medical dummies with various critical injuries. What Lee did not expect was the dummies were designed to bleed profusely to replicate severe arterial bleeding.

"I put my knee (on the artery); whatever it takes to stop that bleeding to save a life," Lee said.

Lee already used a tourniquet on another patient and was forced to make due with the equipment he had at the time to get the bleeding under control.

"I had to use the old fashioned way with a cravat," Lee said, "as soon as I put it on, spurting of the blood stopped and started oozing slowly."

Time was critical during this exercise because if medics did not evacuate the casualties quickly enough the threat level on the town increased. After 10 minutes, simulated mortars began to fall. After that, a sniper appeared from one of the buildings shooting at the American forces and the medics were forced to decide which casualties, based on severity of their injuries, to treat first.

"They got after it, no matter how bad it got they just kept coming at them," said Lt. Col. Robert L. Hatcher Jr., commander, 64th BSB, who was on hand to view the event and also to see if he had given his Soldiers enough support in the planning stages.

"We were stretched for resources so I only sent two gun trucks out for this organization," Hatcher Jr. said. "I met the minimum standards, but I won't do that again. It will always be four gun trucks."

Lessons were learned up and down the rank structure. Striker Brigade Command Sgt. Major Daniel Dailey was standing next to Hatcher at the event and was happy with how his younger Soldiers preformed.

"They got out and they assessed the situation first instead of rolling right in there, identifying for themselves whether they were in harm," Dailey said. "Then they established forward security prior to doing anything else."

It was the cognizant thought of security that Dailey was most happy to see from his Soldiers and medics because the elder infantryman knew security might be the most import element in a trauma incident.

"Security is paramount in any situation," Dailey said. "As soon as you lose the security factor the entire element becomes vulnerable. As long as the Soldier is out here improving everyday that is the key to our success. If we get better at one task today then we are better Soldiers tomorrow."

• Date Taken: 05.30.2007
• Date Posted: 06.04.2007 10:05
• Story ID: 10649
• Location: FORT IRWIN, CA, US