2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment Marines discover, seize insurgent cache

Photo By Lt. Col. Kurt Stahl | Lance Cpl. Javier Rohas, 19, of West Palm Beach, Fla., and Lance Cpl. Gregory Butera, 20, of Port Jefferson, N.Y., with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, post security on the perimeter of a compound recently occupied by insurgents where their patrol found a cache of improvised explosive device-making materials here Aug. 10.  

GARMSIR DISTRICT, AFGHANISTAN

08.10.2009

Story by 1st Lt. Kurt Stahl 

I Marine Expeditionary Force

GARMSIR DISTRICT, Afghanistan — Marines with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment discovered a cache of improvised explosive device-making materials in an insurgent compound here Aug. 10.

The cache, found by a patrol and seized by the company's explosive ordnance disposal technicians, included 150 pounds of ammonium nitrate and several other components used to make IEDs in this area. This was the first time Co. E has uncovered an insurgent cache of any type in this area.

The patrol kicked off just after daybreak in order to investigate a compound that Taliban militants had been using to launch direct-fire attacks on Marines in recent days. A report from a local Afghan spurred the mission.

When the Marines reached the objective, they called their combat operations center, about two kilometers away, to request the expertise of the EOD team attached to the company.

"We expected to find weapons since there had been so much enemy fire from the compound in the past," said platoon sergeant Staff Sgt. Timothy Funke. "It is always good to find materials that can be used against our Marines before they are employed."

The Marines also found well-defined fighting positions within the compound and rounds typically used by the insurgents in the area.

"We know that the insurgents had multiple teams operating out of here," said Funke, who is from Bangor, Mich. "We will make every effort to ensure that they will not be able to use this compound against us effectively,"

Shortly after being summoned, the EOD technicians were ready to link up with the patrol. They pushed out to the objective within minutes.

According to the technicians, this cache comprised the materials typically used for IEDs in the area, so the find potentially saved multiple lives. The Marines loaded the IED-making materials into their vehicles and took them back to Co. E's combat outpost for disposal.

"It was definitely a good find — something that would have been emplaced in the future had we not found it," said 1st Lt. Kyle Kurtz, executive officer of Co. E and a Greensborough, N.C., native. "This single event is not going to crush the enemy, but it is another step to taking away the insurgents' ability to be proactive."

According to the patrol leader, the Taliban militants formerly occupying the compound were hiding in a tree line only about 100 meters away observing the Marines' movements. However, the patrol was fully prepared with perimeter security in case the insurgents had decided to attack.

The 2/8 is an element of Regimental Combat Team 3, whose mission is to conduct counterinsurgency operations in partnership with the Afghan national security forces in southern Afghanistan.

• Date Taken: 08.10.2009
• Date Posted: 08.18.2009 06:49
• Story ID: 37626
• Location: GARMSIR DISTRICT, AF