Dust, noise, heat not beating down Bashur airmen

  • Published
  • By Louis A. Arana-Barradas
  • Air Force Print News
As airmen continue to unload cargo around the clock in the blazing sun, dust and noise at Bashur Airfield in northern Iraq, others ensure they stay healthy.

A team of bioenvironmental engineers and public health troops look out for their welfare, preventing the things that could make them sick or cause them injury.

As a result, not a single airman has gotten ill in the nearly three weeks the 86th Expeditionary Contingency Response Group has been at the base, according to Maj. Darrin Ott, the group's bioenvironmental engineer.

People have gotten bumps and bruises, but only one airman has had to return home, and that was because of a severely fractured finger. It is an impressive record, he said.

"We've done better than on past deployments," Ott, of Cedar Rapids, Mich., said. "And given the conditions we're living and working in, it's amazing we're doing as well."

Ott said that is because the unit is small -- it has less than 160 people -- and the troops have gotten the environmental medicine flight's safety and health messages.

Master Sgt. Mindy Patrick, a bioenvironmental troop from Nashua, N.H., said the group's good fortune is a huge change from what happened to units during the first U.S. war with Iraq.

"During (Operation) Desert Storm, 90 percent of the injuries we suffered didn't result from combat," Patrick said. "We haven't had that here."

Ott said the biggest problem facing troops is the bright sun. The virtually pollution free skies of northern Iraq do not filter all the intense sunlight and most troops work outdoors.

"And since troops are taking malaria medication, it makes them even more susceptible to sunburn," said Ott, who has a sunburned face. "In a few weeks heat will be a big problem."

The other big problems are dust and noise. Vehicles kick clouds of choking dust. And when C-17 Globemaster IIIs taxi for takeoff, they have to turn to get on the runway, which kicks up a cloud of swirling dust that covers people from head to toe and gets into their eyes, ears and mouth. These "dustings," as airmen on the line call them, occur each time one of the huge transports takes off -- which is all night long.

Since most airmen live and work from 75 to 200 yards from the flightline, noise is another problem. Airmen wear double ear protection on the line, but most do not wear it in their tents.

Patrick said getting clean water is also a top priority. The airfield has no water system, and flying in the water on cargo planes is expensive. So the group is shopping for water from local sources. Some is arriving from Turkey by truck.

When it arrives at the base, Ott said, "we look to see if it's been tampered with."

Water for washing clothes and bodies comes from a nearby stream. An Air Force water truck, escorted by security forces, hauls it back to fill water bladders for the few showers at the camp. Airmen get one shower a week.

The "bio" team airmen check the water to ensure it is safe. They also keep tabs on conditions that can cause heat stress. And they check for chemical or biological contaminants and heavy metals in the soil.

"We've checked for everything and haven't found any hazards," Ott said. "This whole area is actually pretty clean."

Still, Patrick said, they keep detailed records. That is mainly to check for and document any trends.

"But we haven't found any major medical problems," she said. "People back home shouldn't worry about their sons and daughters here. The conditions are very good compared to other places in Iraq."