EOD team destroys weapons one cache at a time

JALALABAD, AFGHANISTAN

01.07.2005

Courtesy Story

DVIDS Hub       

By Sgt. Frank Magni

JALALABAD PROVINCIAL RECONSTRUCTION TEAM, Afghanistan ---- After nearly 30 years of war, Afghanistan is full of left over munitions from the Soviet occupation and the unrest that followed until the coalition ousted the Taliban in October 2001.

With rockets, mortars and mines littering virtually every corner of the country, eliminating these hazards has become a huge concern for Coalition forces and the Afghan government.

Multiple EOD teams are spread throughout the country responding to the calls for support. These teams can be found everywhere from main installations like Bagram Air Base, to the most remote forward operating bases.

"We are out here every day to make this country safe for military and locals," said Spc. Bill Fitzpatrick, 707th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company EOD specialist.

Fitzpatrick, along with fellow team member Sgt. Jerod Harding and team leader Staff Sgt. Miles Cathers, operate in and around Nangahar province in eastern Afghanistan in support of multiple coalition units.

Having a three-member team is somewhat unique for EOD, but it reduces the strain of the mission by having an extra person to assist with the myriad of tasks EOD Soldiers are responsible for.

"It is like a crap shoot for us," said Cathers. "One day we might be destroying the contents of a cache, the next we might have to disable a bomb in a village."

Employing equipment from robots to sniper rifles, the tools each team has to do their job are as numerous as the tasks themselves.

Whether is it is rendering unexploded ordnance 'safe," or blowing it in place, the first level of decision-making falls to the team leader on the scene.

Working with unit leadership, an EOD team leader is always the primary ordnance adviser in an area. Helping leaders balance decisions and giving the best estimates possible on the risk of detonation to personnel and equipment, makes the team leader's job demanding.

Cathers is on his third deployment to Afghanistan, and the leaders he works with trust his advice.

"I tell the leader 'these are the things we can do," " he said. "Many leaders I work with go directly off the advice I give."

With extensive experience in EOD operations within the country, Cathers said he relies heavily on his training and approaches each mission using two tools -- experience and a careful thought process.

With the variety of different scenarios each team can encounter, all EOD personnel are sent into a situation with years of experience from throughout the field of EOD personnel. The experience is bolstered with updated doctrine that is used to assess each scenario.

"Everything we do has precedents," said Cathers. "We never go into a situation without knowing how a piece of ordnance works."

But experience and doctrine is only one part of the equation for the EOD team -- the next is problem solving.

"There is no such thing as a cookie cutter mission," said Cathers. Every EOD Soldier must be prepared to think on their feet and adapt to the situation.

The key attribute to making a successful on-the-spot decision is common sense.

"We have to be very good problem solvers," said Cathers. "We aren't just "John Wayneing" it out there. We think every problem through."

In Afghanistan, the team's approach is simple.

"If anything is unsecured, we take care of it right there," said Fitzpatrick. "If not, it could possibly come back as a roadside bomb."

They also prioritize the ordnance found in each cache with the same mindset.
"We destroy the items that can be used against Coalition forces first," said Fitzpatrick.

While the approach each Soldier takes to his job remains the same, each outlook on why each member chose EOD is different.

"I need to know that I've done something important at the end of the day," said Harding. "With EOD, I feel like I'm doing something good every day."

Others on the team feel they were born to do EOD.

"I was always the kid who would take something apart and put it back together again," said Fitzpatrick. "I think this job is a perfect fit for me."

One theme that remains constant in Canter's team is a feeling of brotherhood.
"We are really close," said Cather. "In many ways, I'm trusting my life with a team member. In a way, they feel like brothers to me."

With an overwhelming amount of ordnance surfacing each day, Cathers avoids feeling like there is no end in sight.

"I just take it one mission at a time," he said. "Each time I have left Afghanistan, it has felt like I made the country at least a little bit safer. This time will be no exception."

• Date Taken: 01.07.2005
• Date Posted: 01.07.2005 10:48
• Story ID: 808
• Location: JALALABAD, AF