was halfway across the open ground. The compound looked so close… And then Doug stepped directly onto an IED pressure plate.
It’s the noise that gets you at first. Forget all those explosions you’ve seen in the movies. This was like being in the middle of a thunderclap. Then the shock waves hit you.
Have you ever been punched? This is a hundred times worse.
I was thrown back several metres, and landed on my back. I couldn’t see anything through the cloud of dust. I shouted Doug’s name. No reply. I heard something thud onto the ground right next to me. It was an arm, severed just below the shoulder. I knew then that Doug was dead.
I’m sorry. I know my voice is breaking up. It’s a hard thing to talk about. I’ll be alright in a second.
Rubble was falling on me. A shower of stones. But then something hit my own leg that wasn’t a stone. It slammed into my shin. I couldn’t see what it was because of the dust. And at first my leg didn’t hurt. But then the dust settled. I saw a twisted hunk of metal sticking out of my lower leg. My trousers were ripped. And there was blood.
A lot of blood.
The pain hit me suddenly. It’s hard to describe how bad it was. To start with, it felt as if all the blood in my leg had turned to ice. I tried to sit up and pull the shrapnel out. A terrible twist of agony shrieked up through my knee. I fell back to the ground again. I think I was screaming. Yelling to my mates to come and help me. But as I looked back towards the cornfield, I could see that the patrol commander had ordered them not to step out into the open ground. No one was coming to help. I didn’t blame them. Where you find one IED, you normally find loads. A single step could kill any one of them. They were afraid. Who wouldn’t be?
There was one exception. Charlie, the sniffer dog, was already poking his nose through the edge of the cornfield. And Sam, his handler, was by his side. He had one hand on the dog’s head. His eyes were narrowed in concentration.
The man and his dog stepped out into open ground.
Chapter Five:
THE SNIPER
Charlie and Sam had to cover about twenty metres. Doesn’t sound like a lot, does it? Well, believe me – if a single step could kill you, it might as well be twenty miles.
The dog went first. His nose was close to the ground. He inched forwards, sniffing the desert floor. And even though I was screaming – oh, boy, the pain – he didn’t look up once. Sam walked directly behind him. He had a plastic bottle full of white chalk dust. He used this to mark a safe passage behind him.
My world started to spin. I no longer had the energy to scream. But I still had the energy to be scared. And I was scared when I saw the dog stop.
He was only ten metres away from me. He barked once, then sat down.
His handler crouched on all fours. He stretched out one hand and gently scraped the dusty earth in front of the dog. I couldn’t see what he found, but it must have been a pressure plate. Sam made a chalk circle around it. The dog turned ninety degrees and boxed round the IED. Its nose was back down to the ground.
I think I must have passed out then. The next thing I knew, Charlie was licking my face. I heard Sam’s voice. “Stay with us, buddy,” he said. “We’re going to get you out of here.” I felt a needle puncture my trousers and slip into my good leg. Sam was giving me morphine. Seconds later, the drug hit my bloodstream.
It’s a weird feeling, morphine. It doesn’t take the pain away. It just stops you caring about it. I felt drowsy as Sam lifted me up in his arms and followed Charlie, step by slow step, towards the compound. How long did it take? I couldn’t tell you. All I know is that without the dog, we’d never have made it there in safety.
Have you ever heard the sound of a Chinook helicopter? They’re the ones with two sets of rotors.
When you’re out on the ground, it’s the best sound you can hear. I couldn’t see well, but I knew a Chinook was
It’s the noise that gets you at first. Forget all those explosions you’ve seen in the movies. This was like being in the middle of a thunderclap. Then the shock waves hit you.
Have you ever been punched? This is a hundred times worse.
I was thrown back several metres, and landed on my back. I couldn’t see anything through the cloud of dust. I shouted Doug’s name. No reply. I heard something thud onto the ground right next to me. It was an arm, severed just below the shoulder. I knew then that Doug was dead.
I’m sorry. I know my voice is breaking up. It’s a hard thing to talk about. I’ll be alright in a second.
Rubble was falling on me. A shower of stones. But then something hit my own leg that wasn’t a stone. It slammed into my shin. I couldn’t see what it was because of the dust. And at first my leg didn’t hurt. But then the dust settled. I saw a twisted hunk of metal sticking out of my lower leg. My trousers were ripped. And there was blood.
A lot of blood.
The pain hit me suddenly. It’s hard to describe how bad it was. To start with, it felt as if all the blood in my leg had turned to ice. I tried to sit up and pull the shrapnel out. A terrible twist of agony shrieked up through my knee. I fell back to the ground again. I think I was screaming. Yelling to my mates to come and help me. But as I looked back towards the cornfield, I could see that the patrol commander had ordered them not to step out into the open ground. No one was coming to help. I didn’t blame them. Where you find one IED, you normally find loads. A single step could kill any one of them. They were afraid. Who wouldn’t be?
There was one exception. Charlie, the sniffer dog, was already poking his nose through the edge of the cornfield. And Sam, his handler, was by his side. He had one hand on the dog’s head. His eyes were narrowed in concentration.
The man and his dog stepped out into open ground.
Chapter Five:
THE SNIPER
Charlie and Sam had to cover about twenty metres. Doesn’t sound like a lot, does it? Well, believe me – if a single step could kill you, it might as well be twenty miles.
The dog went first. His nose was close to the ground. He inched forwards, sniffing the desert floor. And even though I was screaming – oh, boy, the pain – he didn’t look up once. Sam walked directly behind him. He had a plastic bottle full of white chalk dust. He used this to mark a safe passage behind him.
My world started to spin. I no longer had the energy to scream. But I still had the energy to be scared. And I was scared when I saw the dog stop.
He was only ten metres away from me. He barked once, then sat down.
His handler crouched on all fours. He stretched out one hand and gently scraped the dusty earth in front of the dog. I couldn’t see what he found, but it must have been a pressure plate. Sam made a chalk circle around it. The dog turned ninety degrees and boxed round the IED. Its nose was back down to the ground.
I think I must have passed out then. The next thing I knew, Charlie was licking my face. I heard Sam’s voice. “Stay with us, buddy,” he said. “We’re going to get you out of here.” I felt a needle puncture my trousers and slip into my good leg. Sam was giving me morphine. Seconds later, the drug hit my bloodstream.
It’s a weird feeling, morphine. It doesn’t take the pain away. It just stops you caring about it. I felt drowsy as Sam lifted me up in his arms and followed Charlie, step by slow step, towards the compound. How long did it take? I couldn’t tell you. All I know is that without the dog, we’d never have made it there in safety.
Have you ever heard the sound of a Chinook helicopter? They’re the ones with two sets of rotors.
When you’re out on the ground, it’s the best sound you can hear. I couldn’t see well, but I knew a Chinook was
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