Marines take advantage of first rest since war?s onset

[thedrifter]

March 28, 2003

Marines take advantage of first rest since war?s onset

By C. Mark Brinkley
Times staff writer

NEAR AL NASSARIYA, Iraq ? Marine artillery units here got a much needed day of rest Friday, spending time cleaning weapons, fixing broken equipment and tending to tired feet and dirty clothes. After several days of shooting and moving ? targeting enemy artillery batteries as well as supporting other ground units as they cleared enemy positions in this central Iraqi region, more than 60 miles north of Nasiriyah ? the members of 3rd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment used Friday for spring cleaning.
Machine guns and howitzers got a thorough scrub, night-vision devices got much-needed maintenance, and the Marines themselves got time to change socks and give each other haircuts.

There?s been little personal time for the Marines since the war began, so troops have taken care of hygiene issues on the fly. Today, though, shampoo bottles came out of backpacks and shirts got changed, socks were rotated and sleeping bags aired out.

The Marines from Battery M, 3/11, haven?t fired a round for almost 24 hours, their first significant break in shooting since they helped kick in the door at Safwan and near Basra a week ago. Today, they are on call for Regimental Combat Team-7 as that unit works to create a forward airbase here is central Iraq, and it?s only because artillery hasn?t been needed that Battery M has had the luxury of free time.

It was also a day for resupplying, loading up on the big four: ammunition, fuel, water and food. The combat train following the Marines as they march north toward Baghdad has had its own problems in keeping up the troops? rapid pace, but you can?t tell it from here.

?The supply chain is working the way it was supposed to work,? said 1st Lt. Ty Yount, 26, executive officer for Battery M from Morganton, N.C. ?Bullets, gas, water and food ? that?s our priority. They are supplying us. They are taking and filling rapid requests for maintenance. They are keeping us rolling.?

A secure forward airbase would help ease the supply line as the logisticians help push much needed supplies north. Already, Marine units at various locations are receiving supplies by general airdrop, pushed from the back of transport helicopters onto positions in the field.

At Battery M, the call came early Friday morning that field rations would be cut to two meals a day. The word was changed later in the day, as supply trucks with food ambled closer to the Marines? position, back to the standard three meals.

The general rule is to be conservative, but eat if you?re hungry. Most Marines are sick of the selection of food already, so two meals is plenty.

Mostly, though, mail is the thing the Marines are missing most ? news from the rear, home-baked treats, and store-bought items unavailable here in the desert. No one is certain when the letters and packages will finally catch up, as the big four remain a priority for now.

?I?m doing all right. We need an airdrop of Copenhagen,? said Lance Cpl. Jason Samuels, 20, and artillery mechanic from La Grange, Ky. ?But everything?s been going good. We?ve been sending rounds downrange, and that?s all that matters.?


Sempers,

Roger