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PATROL BASE WISHTAN, Helmand Province, Afghanistan (2/19/2012) –
The pointman of a patrol spotted something sticking out of the
ground. He immediately identified it as an improvised explosive
device, the number one killer of coalition forces in Afghanistan.
Cpl. Adam McKinley, squad leader with 2nd platoon, Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, instructs his squad members during a security patrol
on Feb. 6, 2012. McKinley, a 24-year-old native of Sacramento, Calif., strictly followed the route of the pointman,
who scanned the area for improvised explosive devices and enemies. Photo by USMC Sgt. Jacob Harrer |
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Lance Cpl. Andrew J. Rodriguez, the lead man in the patrol, had to
clear a safe path for the explosive ordinance disposal team to
respond to the device. Using his metal detector, he swept the area
until he heard the beep – a signal that confirmed there was metal
buried in the dirt. When the EOD team arrived, they confirmed a
second IED on the spot.
“It was pretty nerve-racking,” said
Rodriguez, a
mortarman by trade with Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine
Regiment. “I'm usually very relaxed, but I was definitely nervous
standing right on top of an IED.”
He said the pointman has
one of the most dangerous jobs in the platoon. His job is to select
a safe path for the patrol, visually inspecting every step he takes
while still on the lookout for the enemy.
“His job is
primarily just to safeguard his force by using his brain, his
experience, his insight, and his intuition to figure out where the
IEDs are most likely and then avoiding those areas,” said Capt.
David T. Russell, Weapons Company commander. “The metal detector is
a backup to double-check what his brain and his eyes are telling
him.”
To make his job harder, insurgents began constructing
IEDs to circumvent the metal detector. Some IEDs contain rudimentary
materials: wooden boards and blocks, trash and plastic containers.
The finished product contains very little metal, making it difficult
for the metal detector to pick up. |
The pointman searches for subtle clues to visually detect
IEDs, explained Rodriguez, a 19-year-old native of San Jose,
Calif.
After the pointman scans the area with his eyes
and sweeps the ground with his metal detector, he keeps
walking.
The rest of the squad follows the route
strictly to avoid triggering a pressure-sensitive IED, said
Cpl. Adam McKinley, a squad leader with Weapons Company, and
a native of Sacramento, Calif.
“It's a very taxing
and demanding job, and that sweeper has to be on high alert
the entire time he's outside the wire,” explained Russell, a
San Antonio native. “He knows the lives of the Marines
behind him are very, very much in his hands.”
The
Marines of Weapons Company were responsible for securing
Wishtan, a village packed with walled compounds and many
danger areas, such as narrow alleyways and intersections.
Despite the IED threat, Rodriguez said he doesn't feel
much fear when he leads patrols, because after months of
being a pointman, he gained confidence in his abilities.
“I'm not going to say I don't fear anything out here,
because I do,” said Rodriguez. “There is a possibility of
stepping on an IED, but going out every day, you know where
to walk and you know what to do. You know where to go.”
By USMC Sgt. Jacob Harrer
2nd Marine Division
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2012
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