You Don't Mess With Doc - Carlo Dealca (part 1 of 2)

We interview HM3 Carlo Dealca to trace how a Navy Corpsman goes from a clinic and 9/11 at sea to greenside life with 2/4 and earning trust with an infantry unit. The story builds from Kuwait and the convoy to Ramadi into the shock of IEDs and the chaos of April 6 on Easy Street, where Doc treats wounded under fire and remembers every second. 

• getting from a branch clinic into an infantry battalion 
• why he chooses Corpsman life
• training confidence, mental rehearsal, and early-war gear limitations 
• building and hauling medical bags, scrounging tourniquets 
• the cold convoy north, first impressions of Ramadi 
• the first IED hit 
• BAS relationships
• guard duty stories, local food, and staying healthy in-country 
• April 6 kickoff
• treating multiple casualties, triage under pressure

If you like what you've heard, this is a multi part episode. Make sure you listen to the rest of the story.

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If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above. 

All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM 

Transcript

Meet The Corpsman Behind 2-4

SPEAKER_01 0:11

Great. Let's introduce everybody to who you are.

SPEAKER_03 0:15

Uh I'm HM Dialka from uh or Carla Dialka from uh MAC 3, 2nd Battalion Ford Marines 2-4.

SPEAKER_01 0:23

Nice, man. So wherever you want to start, man, I bet you you I actually don't remember where you came to us from. I know you were with another unit before us.

SPEAKER_03 0:33

Yeah, I was actually uh assigned to the uh 21 Area Branch Medical Clinic prior to uh going to 2-4. And uh we got we call it being mapped out, medical augmented personnel. Um I got mapped out along with another Corbin in my clinic. Um I think his name's uh HM3 Hughes. So both of us got mapped out. We went to uh what's that place called? The Camp Margarita, first division. Oh, yeah. We went over there, and my my wife, my ex-wife at the time, my wife at the time, she was pregnant. Um and I'm like, you know, like scared shitless, dude. You know, I'm like what the hell's gonna happen. Um I guess then they originally put me in 27, uh, 29 palms, and I had to beg the uh the two folder. I was like, hey man, that's a little that's too far, dude. You know, I want to be able to come back, you know, with my wife, she's pregnant. So they worked out some sort of deal with um the chief, and uh I went with Hughes to 2-4 because I think he was attached to you guys at Okinawa.

SPEAKER_01 1:49

Yeah, I remember him. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:51

What was the name again? He looks like Carlton. He looks like Carlton, dude.

SPEAKER_01 1:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:54

Uh from Fresh Prince of Bel Air with the stash, dude. So he so he's like, yeah, go to 2-4 with me, me and you will uh, you know, I'll kind of show you around. Because I had no experience being in Greenside at the time, you know. My only experience is going to the field with uh third tracks, the schools over there in 21 area. That's my experience at the green side. Um, so I'd go to the field with them every time they go. Um, you didn't deploy overseas or anything in the green side. I did on the Navy side prior to being a corpsman. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

But um So how long would you have been in at that point? Were you still on you're you're still on your first tour though, right?

SPEAKER_03 2:40

Yeah, I was actually been in for I would say four years. Four years already. Because I I started in I got in in 2000 prior to 9-11.

SPEAKER_00 2:52

Okay. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 2:53

You know, and uh I I was stationed in uh Mayport, Florida. It's uh F USS Underwood. So I did the MedPack.

SPEAKER_02 3:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:03

Um MedPAC and during 9-11, actually when 9-11 happened, it uh I was like a designated semen. I don't know if you guys know what that is. It's like you have no uh MOS. You're just you're just waiting to strike another another job.

Getting Mapped Out To The Marines

SPEAKER_03 3:20

And uh I was actually like cleaning or swabbing the deck when I when they said when uh when I saw the uh when 9-11 happened, the first plane hit the uh towers.

SPEAKER_01 3:32

That's crazy.

SPEAKER_03 3:33

And yeah, and uh I remember that day, it's such a like it was like this thing it was yesterday. I saw the plane hit, the next thing you know, it's like general quarters, and we pulled out and we started going for like 90 days up and down the eastern seaboard. So until everything calmed down, then I struck to become corpsman. I got attached to uh the Camp Pendolin hospital, the the clinic there, and uh with you guys.

SPEAKER_00 4:06

So did you did you want to be a Corpsman or is it just the needs of the people?

SPEAKER_03 4:09

Oh yeah, man. Okay, I wanted to be a corpsman. Oh, I'm Filipino, dude. You know, I wanted to be that's funny as hell. I was like, dude, I was like, it's my you know, every Philip, all Filipinos are uh nurses, dude, you know, and I was like, yeah, I want to be like my mom and be like follow the Filipino dream, be a nurse.

SPEAKER_00 4:29

I was gonna say you're on the wrong, you're you're you're on the wrong side of the continent for that too. You were supposed to be on the west side anyways, right?

SPEAKER_03 4:37

Well, we we we we immigrated here, you know, uh so we got stuck here in Michigan. But uh, so I was like, man, I'm like, I'm gonna be a corpsman. And uh what they told me about the green side, you know, like the the marine side, and we're like, I looked at my orders after core school, I was like, what's this what's this first Mar div that Naval Hospital? I was like, oh, you can get called up with the green side. I was like, all right, cool, whatever. And I I actually learned to love it, you know. I was like, man, I should have been green side the whole time. So I enjoyed it. So but yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:17

Did did you end up going the distance? Did you did you stay in?

SPEAKER_03 5:21

Oh no, man. I stayed uh eight years. Oh eight years uh after after you guys I went back to my clinic uh in 21 area. They actually, after I got back, dude, they tried to deploy me again.

SPEAKER_01 5:36

I'm not surprised.

SPEAKER_03 5:38

In December, I don't know if it was one thing.

SPEAKER_01 5:40

Oh wow, that quick.

SPEAKER_03 5:41

Yeah. And uh I was like, dude, I just got back. And then I I'm like, uh, whatever, man. If you want me to go eight shit over there, I'll do it, you know. But they they let it go. So I stayed with them until I got out in uh oh seven, oh eight. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 5:59

So so I'm sorry, did you say when you came over to two four? Would that have been like an over time frame?

SPEAKER_03 6:06

Or I would say I came in to two four around maybe December of 03.

unknown 6:12

December.

SPEAKER_00 6:14

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 6:15

So after they gave me those orders, I went to 2-4 and checked into the uh BAS. And uh well, I didn't even know what company I was gonna go, but I wrote I know Rudy. So Rudy's like, hey man, you know how he sounds like that. Hey, I mean go to a weapons company. I was like, what's that? Like, yeah, you don't have to walk. I'm like, all right, cool, I'll do that, dude. We have vehicles, sick, dude. I'll do that. So I think I got attached. Who was that? Uh Ray Brand, I met Ray Brand, Ray Brand's great, man. Uh Ray Brand. Hell yeah. Uh who's the young Bundy and uh Natividad. So we all went to uh map three. And uh obviously uh Hughes. Hughes gonna say yeah, you and Hughes were together in map three. Yeah, so then after that, man, like but everybody, man, you know, like as soon as I got map three, you know, everybody told me I have to prove myself pretty much. Any tweet were like shit in the beginning, though. They're like, man, you're like, you know, I'm like I used to be called dog. And I know I have they have I have to earn that or something, right? I have to earn and prove myself until they start calling me dog. So when um when uh to some of the PTs are this in this is in Kuwait. Sorry, I'm jumping a little bit.

SPEAKER_02 7:49

No, no, no, no, no, no, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 7:51

Okay. We're in Kuwait and uh Lachard, dude. I learned to love Lachard, man, like you know, throughout this deployment. All right, all the oh, I think he's in charge of the machine gunners. And uh it's like we're going a 50 cal run. Doc, you wanna go? I was like, like, I don't know, but I'll fucking do it, dude. I don't prove I can fucking carry that shit. So I ran with Gordon and them and Blake and uh and the rest of the crew. Um like Pelly. Pelly as well. I tried to stuck it up and suck it up in Kwait. And when we were running throughout the camp, I was like, fuck. I was like, man, it's hot as fuck. Are we carrying this bitch fucking barrel, dude? But it was cool, man. Like I did it. I you know, I always like, you know, I'm gonna do everything, whatever they're doing, the guys type doing, I'm gonna do the same thing. So I can earn their trust. Um, but yeah, so that's that's how that's how my mentality was.

SPEAKER_01 8:50

Dude, you just named off like a who's who of PT studs. Like all those guys had like a 300 PFT. All of those guys had a 300 PFT for sure, especially Lachard.

SPEAKER_03 9:00

Man, you know that that dude, man, like I think when we were already in uh hurricane point, I think he got them boys running with gas mask, dude, for PT.

SPEAKER_01 9:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:10

In Iraq and Romani, dude.

SPEAKER_01 9:12

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:13

He's like, You're going down. I was like, no, dog. Yeah, not with that one, dude. He's they're running with freaking gas masks on.

SPEAKER_01 9:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:22

I was like, that's like, man, Lashar, dude. What a dude, man. What a guy.

SPEAKER_01 9:29

So uh so if you got there in December, that means you got to do at least March Air Force Base, right? You went to March Air Force Base?

SPEAKER_03 9:36

No, I didn't. No, I didn't. I remember I didn't go.

SPEAKER_01 9:40

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 9:41

They put me in uh I was in the BAS getting everything ready for uh deployment. That makes sense.

SPEAKER_00 9:48

So I remember uh what did that look like?

SPEAKER_03 9:51

Like when you say getting ready, were you just like packing conic boxes or stuff like yeah, conic boxes and we're training too, you know. I was out there with the rest of the augmentees. That's a lot, it's all actually it's all over the the um whatchamacallit, the augmentees,

9-11 At Sea And Becoming A Corpsman

SPEAKER_03 10:10

the math guys from uh the hospital. So they're training us, we're helping out over there at the point. I remember when you guys got back from uh Marshall Air Force Base, we had to do a shop call. All this uh was that the smallpox or something.

unknown 10:26

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 10:26

Oh yeah. I think that's the that's the first time I met uh first sergeant back. And uh he's this big black dude, man. Big old dude, man. And uh and I'm like a uh I was like, I think I don't know who was giving him the shot for the smallpox, but somebody was like, I don't know if it was Rudy, but they have to hit him like 30 times with the needle. I was like, man, you're gonna stab that dude 30 times with that needle, he'll freaking break you, dude. Just freaked out because he's a big guy, from what I remember.

SPEAKER_01 10:59

Oh, he was he was a that's the biggest biggest person I've ever seen in person, like outside of a professional sports player. Like he is huge, he's a huge movie, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 11:10

But you know, he he's got that soft voice, those um deep voice. Hey Darko. Oh, he's awesome. I love him. So yeah, man. Um I think that's all the lead up to it, you know.

SPEAKER_00 11:28

So what what kind of it I find it interesting the the type of training everybody got prior to going in? It sounds like you had a decent amount of experience coming into coming over to us. So that's always helpful that it wasn't all brand new. But do you have uh like do you feel like the training that you got like when you when everybody else was at March, do you feel like that was good training for Iraq?

SPEAKER_03 11:52

Or was that it was it was basically uh you know reiterating what we already know uh from um you know training from FMSS um prior to actually coming over to do four or some of the one of the my worst uh my first casualties was one as the corpsman was actually one of the worst I saw. So it prepared me from it, yeah, when I was with the on the field with the uh with uh the track boys, the AAS but AS Battalion down there in the Toto One area. Uh so I was I was fairly confident, you know, because I didn't slack off on training. I believed in training and I tried to I did a lot of uh mental gymnastics as uh you know to what I'm gonna do to certain certain situations. Uh kind of anxious actually over the whole time, you know, playing that mind games with me and what am I gonna do in this situation, always play that uh type of scenarios in my head. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 12:56

So do you do did you feel well trained, like going did you did you feel confident, I should say, going into Iraq? I obviously it it's a whole new world when you actually get there and the tire tire meets the road. Um but did you feel confident going over there? I mean, obviously there's gonna be anxiety, but right.

SPEAKER_03 13:16

Do I feel c did I feel confident? Yeah, I I yeah, I feel confident, man, that I can do the job, man. Like I know I can do uh new things, and I'll do I'll I'll do I'll try to do it well by you know, by trying to do it to help the guys out, you know. Um the training we received, I thought it was good. You know, I don't know how it is now. I mean the tools, don't get me wrong, like the supplies and shit, like tourniquets and all that, you know, like we had to jerry a bit. Yeah, they taught us, you know, we had to they taught us that in school, you know, on how to make your own tourniquet. Now, because I'm I'm a police officer now, like when I first started, because I became a cop a little late. Uh I started seeing like this new tourniquets and the the bandages. It's like, man, if I had this overseas, did you know how many, how many lives could have been saved, you know, with this, with this type of tools we have now. Yep. So but I think I I think they everything was learned from from our from that experience, right? Because the tourniquet is a really making is basically the same thing. It's just now it's more high speed, right? With better, you know, better materials. So yeah, no, I felt I felt fairly confident. And uh especially, you know, getting to know some of the guys like Bundy, uh Rudy, and um Ray Brand, and all of them. Uh, we always share, you know, if I have a question about something, they're always very helpful. So because I always play, like I said, I always play the mind games in my head. I don't I still I'm the same until today as a police officer. Always play the the tricks and the, you know, not the tricks, but the scenarios in my head.

SPEAKER_01 15:02

So you kind of mentioned going over to Kuwait, and when did you start uh sort of gathering medical supplies? Did you get them early and take a med bag over and kind of raid everything from BAS, or did you get an issued set in Kuwait? Because I remember both, but I'm curious what you got personally.

SPEAKER_03 15:24

I think we I think we we had it already at the BAS, if I'm not mistaken, because I remember humping that in the I remember taking it at the freaking plane, dude, and have a lot of too much shit with me. I think I had it with me already. Uh and uh as soon as we got to Kuwait, uh I grabbed more stuff, started generating more uh tourniquets because all of the, you know, they keep saying make make a lot of tourniquets because of what's happening. Yeah. So and I actually get to practice uh my first casualty. I actually did the whole deployment was in Kuwait. Oh, really?

SPEAKER_02 16:01

Yeah what happened then?

SPEAKER_03 16:03

Snackers. He's doing marine stuff, man, young marine stuff. Uh and he was, I think he had a when I was listening to his podcast, I didn't mention it. Um I think he wanted to try his K-bar if his tooth fit sharp, and he was making lap the stuff in his forearm, dude.

SPEAKER_00 16:25

He was trying to shave, he was trying to shave his sharp enough to shave the hair off, and then he ended up.

SPEAKER_03 16:30

He caught it pretty deep, dude. He tried to stitch him up within co hate.

SPEAKER_00 16:36

That's hilarious.

SPEAKER_03 16:38

Freaking knackers, dude. Knackers is a character, quiet dude, but it's a good dude, man.

SPEAKER_01 16:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 16:45

So that's amazing. We didn't even get a rifle there in cohort. I think I rolled on the way to Romadi. No, I was just riding a pistol.

SPEAKER_01 16:56

Yeah, man. We didn't give we didn't give out rifles to the Corpsman until I I think it was right in the middle of all the stuff that happened in April. I think you guys got rifles like April 7th.

SPEAKER_03 17:06

Like oh no, dude. No, dude. I think I had a rifle prior to

Training Mindset And Medical Gear Gaps

SPEAKER_03 17:10

that. I had a rifle prior to that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 17:12

Maybe. Yeah. I know it was I I know a lot of people did not because they were taking the rifles from the gunners because the gunners had rifles. And so, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 17:27

I think I got it when I got the Romadi.

SPEAKER_01 17:29

Oh nice.

SPEAKER_03 17:30

No, uh, as soon as I got the ask, I think, who wants a rifle. Uh oh no, you guys are getting rifle. And um, I was like, cool, I'm getting a rifle. I guess so they gave me the M1682 plastic handguards. Um, and I rolled around with that. And Hughes, I think, was able to get the same thing. And he wanted, and they would get I think he was running around with an ACOG. He was running around with an ACOG.

unknown 17:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 17:54

Oh, really? He's able to get an ACOG and his uh the carriage handle. And I remember they remember like, hey, you want one? I was like, no, dude, if I lose that, man, the Marine Corps will make me pay for it. So that's not even my main job here. My main job is to suppress and pick the patient. So I'm good, man, with the rifle and a pistol. So just bone spot, man. I actually made a replica of it. It's in my basement. So uh M1682. So yeah. Cool.

SPEAKER_00 18:29

So did you go up did you drive up? You were part of the convoy up, right?

SPEAKER_03 18:36

Yes, I did. Uh I drove up with uh who was that in my car? In my truck. It was um I believe I had Lachard with me. And our driver was uh BFC Neil. And I'm trying to remember who my gunner was. I think it might have been uh Campos. Campos. Yeah, yeah. It might have been my gunner, and I don't have anybody sitting next to me. So I remember the whole ride was was freaking horrible, dude. You know, we're we're it was cold as shit. Around March, right? Yep. Yeah. I remember it was March because I spent my birthday on the road. It was like March 4th.

SPEAKER_02 19:22

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 19:23

Um and um I remember during that our travels, I was like, shit, it's my birthday today. And I I was eating uh open MRE. It was my birthday. My birthday dinner was like uh the hamburger patty. It's a good burger, man. So but yeah, I remember that that trip being cold, you know, cold and sleeping. I think do we sleep we stopped by it then and think how many days did that take?

SPEAKER_01 19:54

So again, this is my memory. I I still have not gotten official confirmation, but my memory was slow rolling because those seven tons, like you know, there's whatever 40 vehicles per convoy or 50, I don't know. It was so many. I have pictures of it, and the pictures are like 40, 50 vehicles. And the seven tons couldn't go 60, 70 miles an hour, right? And even a Humvee if you push it to 60, 70, it starts to rattle. Uh, so we were going pretty slow, and we stopped at these fueling points, but everybody had to fuel, so 40 vehicles had to fuel. So we were there for several hours while they fueled everything up. So, yes, we did sleep, but I don't I don't remember if it was two separate days or if it was just we drove for four hours, we refueled, and then it took so goddamn long that it felt like two days. But we did stop. I I know we stopped, and a lot of dudes took naps because that was at least slept for several hours because it took yeah, it took four or five hours to fuel all the seven tons.

SPEAKER_03 20:54

I sleep I remember sleeping on the dirt, dude. Um on that trip, and I'll wake it up with like spider webs all over me. And that's how I was getting getting attacked with one of those uh the camel spiders. Yeah, the camel spiders. You know, and waking up like wrapped in freaking well web uh spider web.

SPEAKER_00 21:14

So and I remember sleeping because I remember I was terrified of getting run over. And so I remember crawling up underneath my Humvee. Uh because I I remember the horror stories from uh 29 Palms of you know, oh yeah, Marines getting run over by you know track vehicles in particular, you know. And those aren't made up stories, those are real ass stories. That's a horrible way to go. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:46

I don't even know where I just slept right next to the vehicle regardless, anyways.

SPEAKER_01 21:51

Yeah. So it was like a it was like a two stage convoy. We convoyed from Camp Victory or whatever it was to the core. To the Kuwait border. There was that staging staging point at the border. And then you crossed over the border. There was that little town. And then we stopped at a refueling point halfway in Iraq. To my memory, it was called Camp Scania, we named named after the trucking company that was there. Um I don't know. Other people have said other names. I I again I don't know, but I remember Scania. I remember the civilian contractors coming out and giving us Gatorade and stuff, and then a lot of dudes sleeping on the ground.

SPEAKER_03 22:29

And then we couldn't I remember that, like just stopping us on bases. And I remember, of course, Cox. Um look, there's no army trick getting nailed on top of the you know, that kind of he's saying just starting up ship, you know. You know, some just talking over there. It was like, oh my god, I don't even see it, dude. I didn't see that.

SPEAKER_01 22:53

That's hilarious.

SPEAKER_03 22:55

Cox, dude. But yeah, that's I remember uh I think somebody got hit by IAD too during that trip.

SPEAKER_01 23:02

So that was in there was two convoys that was in your convoy,

Kuwait Lessons And First Casualty

SPEAKER_01 23:05

definitely took contact in in their trip, but as far as I understand, what was told to me is that somebody did get like dropped off at a Medivac point, and then you kept on going. It was a very short pause.

SPEAKER_03 23:19

Yeah, it was short. When I was the last vehicle of the whole convoy, oh really and we just yeah, I was just afraid, like you know, Neil. Yeah, I remember having to wake up Neil, like hit him because he fell asleep driving. Dude. You know, so it was a long trip, and then one of the things I was afraid of, like, dude, I don't want to get left behind in this bitch, man. Don't fall asleep, dude. You know. And of course, my shards there to keep keep everybody intact. So good. No, it was it was a long trip, man. So as soon as we got to the Romadi with that whole convoy with uh with that weapon, but just uh, I don't know who was with us. Who do you know? Do you remember who was uh road with us?

SPEAKER_01 24:06

So the first the first convoy was mostly weapons company, part of HS and uh golf company. The second convoy was uh Echo Fox and uh the I think the other part of HS flew. I don't know. Maybe they drove with you, but it was Echo and Fox mixed.

SPEAKER_00 24:28

And we did escort and we did escort a couple other one-off people too. There was no, I I know that there's a couple, and I don't know who they all were, but I remember we had special like you know, quote unquote special guests that were from other units that were pitching a ride.

SPEAKER_01 24:45

Um there might have been one or two vehicles too that were getting brought up from somewhere, and then I think some of them got dropped off in Fallujah, even I there was a like a at least from because you and I were in the same first convoy, the there was an Air Force vehicle and one of those like specialty long car hauling type vehicles, like a Hemet. Okay, yeah, and they like a two or three vehicles that split off at the clover leaf when we drove past Fallujah. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 25:14

I haven't thought about that in years. I didn't know where it was that man, you know.

SPEAKER_01 25:21

So I was the only reason why I remember this is I was the opposite of you. I was the first vehicle, and so I was required to know the route and every checkpoint. And I remembered, dude, I don't think I slept for 30 hours because I was like just staring at those maps, like I don't know what the fuck I'm looking at. And like I was like, I wrote all these notes and everything, so it was very it's a very detailed memory of like remembering each little checkpoint.

SPEAKER_03 25:44

Well, you're the right man for the job, man. You know, I don't remember that, but it worked. Yeah, God forbid we get lost, dude. You don't know what a suck.

SPEAKER_01 25:54

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 25:56

But yeah, I remember when we rolled through uh Ramadi, man. I'm like, oh, this it might be not be the first time we rolled through with that convoy. I'm like, too bad, you know, seems lively. Then I start getting me mugged. I was like, oh shit, this doesn't look cool, you know. Then we went once we get to uh the base, I was like, man, it might be a rough one out there. So I kind of had that gut feeling that it'd be a rough one.

SPEAKER_00 26:25

So you know, you saying that reminds me that I I agree. I rem I don't remember, I think we were coming up into near Fallujah when I started really appreciating how much infrastructure they had, you know, like the guardrails, the signage. I mean, aside for the fact that it was half in Arabic and half in English, I mean, it could have been the Southwest with how how built up it seemed coming into, and then especially Ramadi itself. But equally, it was like, oh, this might not be, you know, they're more developed than I thought.

SPEAKER_03 26:55

Well, yeah, because I was expecting like the Philippines man where I grew up, you know, to where it's like you know, huts and shit. You know, I see start seeing like advertisement for Samsung and shit, you know, it's kind of I was like, man, I was like, cool. I'm like, okay. Then of course start getting mean must like, oh man, let's see, let's see how it goes. Yeah. But I'm like, you know, you keep saying win the hearts of the minds, I'm all waving. Like, no, they keep doing one of these things where they show their their chin or whatever. It's like, whatever, man, and the bottom of their shoes, like whatever. So, but no, it's all good. It's all good.

SPEAKER_01 27:34

Well, so what do you kind of remember about getting settled when we first got there and then any of those kind of first missions in March? Because it was March 6th and 7th, I believe, is when we rolled across.

SPEAKER_03 27:46

Well, uh, one of the few things I remember is uh I remember they did uh I didn't go with the they went to uh I think a lot of our NCOs, I think the sergeants, Williams, uh Lachard, and maybe Gunny, and I know Qs went with them um to uh to be with the um the army guys, right seat, left seat. And I think they hit they they uh took contact or they had an IED, I think.

SPEAKER_01 28:15

Yeah, I know so we didn't catch any contact in our left seat right seats. My memory was I think you guys caught the part of your left seat right seats with maybe a like a chow convoy mission, and and there was some contact. That's that's as much as my memory as I can muster. But they were the you guys were the first ones to like ever get any shots and shoot back, and like yeah, because I remember La Chard.

SPEAKER_03 28:39

I just got myself in combat action river, and he's all fired up. Yeah, you guys got shot at. I was like, god damn, dude, we just got here. Yeah, been here one one or two days. Yeah. And I remember he was the shaking his head. I was like, all right, cool.

The Cold Convoy North To Ramadi

SPEAKER_03 28:55

Yeah, some of the missions I remember, you know, we're doing we did a lot of one of those um, you know, trying to remember some of it. They we did we passed out a lot of like books or going to the schools. Yeah, all those villages over there, handing out, um, handing out um books or soccer balls or whatnot. Um and I think this is in March, we got hit by it after it's like midday, you know, he was like, all right, cool, we just give all these kids the steeples, school supplies or whatever. And I think after we left, my car, my truck got hit by IED um in uh on Rock Nova. Yep, sure. And uh I remember that's the first time, man. I was like, I got hit, and I was wearing one of those um birth control glasses.

SPEAKER_02 29:51

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 29:52

Going with uh with the rubber band.

SPEAKER_02 29:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 29:55

And uh, and uh I can still I felt like I got tackled by some 300 found linebacker, and my glasses, the rubber flew off my head, and it hit me in my my nose again on my head. And uh I don't know how long I was out, but uh the only thing I can remember, I was with I was with an officer. I don't know what he does. I think he's the um he might have been in charge of the air assets. He's a lieutenant. Is he a lieutenant or captain? Not sure. But he was he got fragged in his face, and uh Campo got kind of uh superficial wound on his neck because he dropped right away into uh right next to me. And I was taking care of him. And uh I told uh I threw the the lieutenant some bandages, he's like, hey, go fix your face because it doesn't look bad. He just have he got peppered in his face. And uh and I was taking care of Campos. He I thought Campos, he wasn't bad, dude, relaxed. He's not bleeding out, you know. But he was, I can understand why, because he was in the gun. Um so I took care of him and gave the guy bandages, and and I remember Rapazo, because he was in the truck. I remember Rapazo, the first thing he came out of his mouth was uh, oh shit, that's how it feels like getting hit by IED. Yeah, dude. You don't want to take too much of that because we're we didn't even have armor at the time. Right now, yeah. I think the first thing I checked, I think after before the when after we get hit, I checked my nuts to see if it's still intact. You know I look down, I'm like, oh I'm good, everything's good. And Silton's good because he was the driver. So yeah, that was my first uh contact with the whole deployment. I don't know, I think that was in March. That was in March, and ever since then, uh every time I see something, I get startled, man, like with like the noises. So like so, and I was asking the BAS, man, hey man, when I'm riding in these trucks, can I wear freaking earplugs? Because I don't want to be jumpy, you know? They're like, nah. So sometimes I would ride like this. Car in my ear. Because I couldn't hear for a long time for a minute after. Oh, yeah. So but that was the first time that got hit up by IED. That was the first contact, I should say. Yeah, I don't know what what date of what date in March was that, maybe towards the end of March.

SPEAKER_00 32:40

Did you end up getting a purple heart for that?

SPEAKER_03 32:43

I got purple heart for I didn't even want this. Like it gave they gave me one from April. Because I took a little bit of shrapnel on my uh my elbows and my right arm from my RPG fragments. Um I remember I think Ray Brandt uh put me up for that, I believe. I'm not sure. So because I was surprised to be at them.

SPEAKER_01 33:06

So yeah, I will say Rick Brandt was good about anybody who got wounded, and you know, it didn't matter if you were missing a limb or if you were just peppered, like you were talking about, he made sure everybody got their their due because there were other units that people that I know that were in other units outside of 2-4 and or different branches of service. If incoming landed within 50 meters of them, even if they did not take actual wounds, they still ended up getting a purple heart. And I was like, Well, if that's the case, all of us would have 50. Like you couldn't put enough, you couldn't put enough on us, right? That's so right. So I'm glad that it was not ridiculous, but but he was like, Hey, I don't know what this is gonna do for you later in life, you know, maybe something. And he like wrote up everybody, everybody, whoever never had anything, and it's I I don't know, I I appreciated it because at the time I was mad, just like you were kind of saying, but I appreciate it now.

SPEAKER_03 34:04

Oh, I appreciate it, man. You know, because I was like, as I remember it's like, uh you know, you you're taking care of man. I was like, oh, you ain't that bad, dude. But he's like, I got you, I'll take care of it. It's like all right, yeah, nice. Thumbs up, boss, he's the boss, dude. He's the senior line corpsman, the old man, dude. Yeah, you know, so but yeah, that's how that's my baptism with fire that I d actually while you while you're bringing that up, so you I know you've Rake Brandt would be your immediate supervisor essentially.

SPEAKER_01 34:37

Uh, how much interaction did you have with the the lieutenant over at BAS and stuff like that? Like BAS.

SPEAKER_03 34:45

Yeah. Uh Doc Crickard.

SPEAKER_01 34:47

Yeah, Cricket and Sons. Sons is the other one, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 34:50

Every so often I would go over there. Um, you know, not not a whole lot. Um, I would hang out there every now and then, but I I usually hang out with the in the hooch with the guys, and I felt like I'm part of the team, so I just stayed there

Hearts And Minds Then The IED Hit

SPEAKER_03 35:05

most of the time. Yeah, Cricket was pretty good, and uh Doc Doc uh Lieutenant's lieutenant, yeah, Lieutenant's son. I think he's the one that did he's the Korean guy. He did the uh acupuncture. Acupuncture, dude.

SPEAKER_00 35:21

Yeah, he did that to me. He did it to me, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 35:24

He did it to me. So he's like, give this a shot. But yeah, I'm sore from getting hit from the IEDs and so you can start poking with needles.

SPEAKER_00 35:32

Yeah, no, no, I forget. Did they he stayed out at combat outpost, right?

SPEAKER_03 35:37

They swore or did they switch? Oh, did they switch? Okay. So yeah, I I would hang out there every now and then because I think, especially when we didn't have we didn't have AC. Uh, you know, do we get AC already? Like as soon as you got there, or not?

SPEAKER_01 35:57

We did not, it would not work in every hooch when we first got there. And then it got blown up frequently enough that we didn't have AC some of the time.

SPEAKER_03 36:08

Yeah, because mine got mine got hit by a mortar.

SPEAKER_01 36:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 36:11

Um, I remember that. Um I remember Rapazo, I don't know when that was. I remember Rapazo, where's Doc at? I'm like, I'm like, what? Like, you're lucky. I'm like, I look in the freaking my uh ace. I think it landed like close to where uh my head would have been. Yeah, you know, like oh shit, dude. Now I'm just I don't have my AC, I just got this. I'm like, this sucks, man. Like, damn, we just got this literally, and you get deframed the priority again. I know, I know, I know. So it's all good though. It's all good.

SPEAKER_01 36:54

Um I I kind of felt like uh at least with the Corman, like you guys were definitely part of the platoon. You did platoon things, but you also kind of were OFP, man, your own fucking program, you know, because you technically answered to BAS, but you didn't really, and you kind of answered to the platoon, but you didn't really like nobody really knew what Doc was supposed to be doing, so it's good, man.

SPEAKER_03 37:17

No, I I usually, you know, I usually I try to help out as much as I can to the guys, you know, um doing, you know, filling sandbags and all of that, um, trying to reinforce the you know, the uh the hooch or doing uh guard duty. I did the guard duty with the guys because I'm like, man, I like I'll do it because you know, I don't want these guys freaking tired as hell, and these guys are watching my back when I'm out there, dude. I don't want them to be tired. So I help out, man. You know, I try to help out as much as I can. Um and you know, once they I earned the trust of the guys, I'm just like one of them, dude. You know, so it was cool. I you know, I hang out with the BAS guys, like the docs, when a lot of times I hang out with the with the uh with my guys in the platoon.

SPEAKER_01 38:11

So well you kind of mentioned guard duty. You got any uh good memories of anything that happened while you're up there on the post?

SPEAKER_03 38:18

Yeah, it's uh remember we we were able to buy, I was able to buy some chicken, dude, on post. Yeah, buy chicken, and you know, it's pretty good. It's still one of the best, some of the best uh chicken I've ever had. And uh I never you know what? I'm the only one who never got sick, dude. Like the guys, yeah. The guys, they they got sick all the time. I'm the only one who I think my stuff, because uh I grew up in the Philippines.

SPEAKER_01 38:49

So I was gonna say, yeah, you get that Filipino stomach, dude. You guys need anything.

SPEAKER_03 38:53

So like, man, this is good. And I'm just chowing down to get five, I think it's five dollars. You get the chicken and the Pepsi and some uh vegetables and some pita bread with it. So we would get it delivered uh as an hour and then, or we got delivered, you know what? I'm not like the store deck. No, like you would get like a kid or something to get us food, you know. Um, usually when I would do guard duty, I remember being with Kate, uh Cake. I shouldn't call him Cake. Davis, uh PFC Davis. I don't know if you guys remember him. He's not yeah, yeah. They they nickname him Cape because he's uh nice and sweet. So I'm always with Davis. Um I remember being with him a lot during uh some of the homedo's uh bridge watches. So nice man.

SPEAKER_01 39:50

Yeah. Uh well you kind of talked a little about March. Yeah. Remember anything uh leading into April?

SPEAKER_03 40:00

April. Dude, April to me, the whole week was interesting, man. It was kind of nuts. Um, I believe the night before the sixth, I think we were on a raid, dude. Um we were on a raid, and I don't know who we got. Um I remember spending the night, or I don't know, was that an early morning raid?

SPEAKER_01 40:25

So it depends. Uh I think you guys ended up being the cordon, the outer cordon element for map one. Map one's the one that went in the houses, and that was for the Farhan brothers, the Republican Guard uh generals. And yeah, that was so you guys were out all night, but the actual raid was like right as sun up uh on the scene. Okay. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 40:48

Yeah, I remember that. Like we did a raid, and when the when the the six popped off, I remember somebody just went to it's like we gotta go. Um we of course we ran to the cars, I mean to the vehicles. Um I not I don't know if anybody knew this. I started April 6th

Life On Post And Guard Duty Stories

SPEAKER_03 41:10

as a gunner.

SPEAKER_02 41:11

Oh, I didn't know really. Oh, yeah. I was on the turret, dude.

SPEAKER_03 41:16

Nice. I was on the turret and we're supposed to go um reinforce uh golf company. Now I don't know the streets like you guys do.

SPEAKER_01 41:26

No, that's all right.

SPEAKER_03 41:28

Where we went. Um, we went there and I'm like, and I'm fucking trying to yell to Rapazo. I was like, fuck it. I don't never been trained on a Mark 19. I got trained on the 50, but the Mark, dude. So the Mark 19, I don't know how to operate this. And the backstory, the Mark 19 story is like, you know, remember I was telling you guys about my first casual Just Corman uh in training. Well, a Mark 19 blew up in his face.

SPEAKER_02 41:57

Oh shit.

SPEAKER_03 41:57

Uh yeah, and he took a he took a frag on his face. It blew up in the barrel. So I'm like, I don't know how to load this. I was like, shit. All right, cool. So I was the very security with M16. That's awesome. So once I remember when we when we got to the guys at the golf, I hopped out of that. Um I believe Hughes took care of the guy from golf at first. They well, I remember that day. I saw I remember seeing Pepper. Was he Pepper? Uh he was doing suppressing fires at the 50. And uh they grabbed the kid or the golf guy, and uh they put him in a vehicle, and Cock jumped in on the turret, and I went back to my usual seat right behind Silton because it was me, Silton, and uh Rapazzo uh in that vehicle. Campo was on the phones, dude. He he he missed he missed the movement. So he he wasn't there, so we took off without him. That's how I that's how I ended up on the third.

SPEAKER_01 43:13

Oh, that's crazy.

SPEAKER_03 43:15

Yeah, he was on the phones. So I mean he didn't know, man, you know. So but oh yeah.

SPEAKER_00 43:23

So no one ran over to the the phone booth to get everybody out, or they just didn't realize that he wasn't in the vehicle.

SPEAKER_03 43:31

I don't think they I don't think they realized that, you know. I I don't know. Go ahead.

SPEAKER_00 43:38

No, no, no, finish, finish, finish your thought.

SPEAKER_03 43:41

Because I just remember going in, getting in, get in my usual spot, and everybody looked where's campo and repository just get up in the gun. I was like, I was like, fuck, all right, cool. Like and I went up there, you know.

SPEAKER_00 43:53

Because I I had completely forgotten about uh sending a runner over to the The phone booth. Yeah, I I like as soon as you said that, all of a sudden I went back to remembering like always that was my one of my jobs was to make sure at least one runner went over there to clear out. Yeah. Uh you know, I'm not sure just to double check.

unknown 44:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 44:16

That's crazy. Well, that would have been early on. I mean, that would have been in the early stages where we still hadn't gotten to some SOPs that became kind of locked in, where it's like send somebody.

SPEAKER_01 44:28

Yeah, ours was we had a sign-out sheet on the front door as you walked out. If you went to chow, like without the whole group, if you went to the washing machines, if you went to the phone, whatever, you wrote your name and where you were. And before we went out on anything, is it usually me or Randall, like a quick look at that thing to make sure everybody was there, and then we would go. But uh yeah, that was.

SPEAKER_00 44:57

I don't think we had a sound up. I don't think we had a sign out shit either. I think we just sent runners.

SPEAKER_01 45:01

So every single platoon did things differently, right? So we just you just made shit up, and that's what made sense for us.

SPEAKER_03 45:08

Uh maybe yeah.

April 6 Kicks Off Under Fire

SPEAKER_03 45:10

I mean, other than that day, I think that's the only time that uh we missed somebody going out.

SPEAKER_01 45:15

Well, and also it sounds like you guys were out all night. So you probably you probably were off task. It yeah, it's weird that I w I just thinking back like logically, I'm curious. You guys were the first out the gate on April 6th. And it's so you probably weren't even on task. So I'm curious why they sent you first, but maybe because you just got back, they thought you were you guys would already be ready.

SPEAKER_03 45:40

I was I was already sleeping. I remember getting startled. I was like, oh we gotta go.

SPEAKER_01 45:46

Dude, that's like most infantry marines and Corman's absolute most impressive talent is being able to fall asleep in two minutes flat. Right? We're off mission, I'm out, right?

SPEAKER_03 45:58

Yeah, I was out, man. You know. Uh so after that, after we picked up the the um the Marine, the cash with the yeah, the cash with the wounded. Um, we ended up going to Easy Street, and that's and that's when um I was I remember it's the first time I ever shot my anybody. And uh I think we started I started hearing the um gunfire already. I can start hearing the zing of the rounds passing us. And um the first time I shot somebody, I remember until today, dude. I still I think about it every day. Um, this is this dude's face because he was pretty close. He was coming around the corner with uh RPG and uh I think it's a PK machine gun. I think he was trying to trap us, trying to set us the last vehicle, and he he came around the corner, and that's and that's when I first time I engaged somebody, I put that bitch on burst. And I still remember the first three, first three rounds missed, and I corrected myself and I hit him. Uh, and he fell, fell to the fell flat to the ground. And like, dude, he's wearing that track suit, you know, like we just locked eyes. If he waited, if that fool waited like 30 seconds, he would have gotten my vehicle. And just I was popping at Silpin. He's like, yeah, I missed him because I guess the side view mirror missed him. And obviously, Cox won't see him because he's facing 6 o'clock. And I just happened to be there. And I was Johnny on the spot with that. First time I shot somebody, put that on burst, dude. I was like, ah, by my God. Thank Jesus. And that's how my April 6 started. Um then we pushed, keep pushing forward. Uh after that. Um, this hold on. After I shot that dude, who kept going. And I remember, I think we had to pull our reverse, and we ended up lighting that area up, that that uh inner that uh that street with uh Mark 19 from my vehicle. And I remember Lachard getting out, and I started shooting again, right? I don't they're out there. And I remember Lachard getting out and grabbing that dude's RPK, and uh it is his RPG. And that's how I know he's crazy, dude. Like he looks he's nuts, he's celebrating. He grabbed the machine gun into RPG, and he he started saying, you know, like just like uh one of those, just a lunatic, dude. Like he was like drinking. He he was just like, you know, he he's like racing a Stanley Cup. Yeah, he grabbed, you know, he's over his head. I was like, damn, dude. Like, these guys are savages. I think I'm in the right team, dude. This is good. This is good. So he and um and we keep keep on pushing that day. Um I uh stepped out of my car or my vehicle, kept moving forward. And uh I remember Zeke uh Hughes. He was one of my first ones I had to look at that day. Um he took a little little some sort of frag on his leg that day. And I'm like, oh, he's like, ah, he'll probably kill me for this. Because I made fun of him afterwards. Because he was like, I remember he was gone, he was limping and out in the corner, and you brought him to me. And it's like, ah, he's like, oh god, they fucking got me. Motherfuckers got me. And I looked at his leg, I was like, You're good, dude. Fuck your shoes back up, we gotta keep moving. So I looked at his not that bad. Go back in, let's go. So and we pushed forward, and the rest of the guys were gonna keep on engaging, Condi and them. Um, and that's when uh I think I remember just when he got hit, and they called me up. So they called me up. Uh once I know somebody got hit, I just started running towards it, like Corman up, or Doc, they need you up front. So I just ran like a, and I always tell this to myself, and until today I'm still the same way. Like, you know, if somebody they need me, I'm gonna do my darnest to freaking to get to them. So I ran as fast as I can to Kandy. And uh so when I saw him, you know, just trying to remember his left shoulder, I believe, right? Was it his left shoulder? And I was trying to patch him up um during that time. And uh he's trying to, this guy, Kandi, man, he's he's trying to get back to the fight, dude. We're almost like we're fighting, man, in the truck.

SPEAKER_01 51:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 51:19

Because I keep pushing him like, dude, stop moving, man. Stop moving. It cussed me out. Fuck you, dog. Give my fucking rifle back. Fuck you. Hurry the fuck up, you know. So I'm trying to, you know, he's sweaty and stuff. You know, so I was having a hard time, you know, with the bandages to uh stick. So I had to rip his shirt off and tear rig uh some sort of dressing on that shoulder, and uh, that dude freaking right went back out there, man. And I'm like, man, I was like, freaking that dude's a freaking stand-up guy, man. He's gonna keep doing he's gonna keep going until until the uh until the trick's done.

SPEAKER_01 52:08

So and if I if I remember the story correct, like you had been engaged 45 minutes, maybe an hour, by the time you had been, by the time Condi got shot. And you were still and you were out for another six or seven hours after that. And right? Like it was a long time.

SPEAKER_03 52:30

I remember being really thirsty that day.

SPEAKER_01 52:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 52:33

Really persuade.

unknown 52:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 52:35

Um, I think how I got how it got freaking frag a little bit was during when I don't know if it was before uh Candy or after, but I remember me. I don't know, me, uh I'm don't I'm not really attached to like any squad, right, as a corpsman. I kind of just like, you know, when I was with them, I just kind of do what you guys do. I just, okay, they're doing I'll follow them, you know. Um, but you usually assign me in the back. Um I was usually in the back of the patrol. But at that time, I ended up with uh Shelton. Uh I believe Gentiley was with me. And uh I remember we got pinned down in uh like one of those bus stops

Treating Wounded Under Combat Pressure

SPEAKER_03 53:25

there. They got like a bus stop full of rubble.

SPEAKER_02 53:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 53:28

Uh and uh I remember Shell saying, there's a manshole on the rooftop that keep uh shooting and trying to pop an RPG. He said, keep shooting. So, all right, cool, corporal, I keep shooting. And that's when, you know, I just saw a flash and and uh and I looked down and everybody was on the ground. I was just still standing up, kept shooting. He's like, didn't you see that RPG? I was like, no, I didn't see shit, dude. You know, I just kept on shooting like he told me to. And that's when I'm like, oh later on, you know, I looked, I was like, ah shit, my shoulder's fucked up, but whatever, kept on going. And uh, and I thought, I I thought actually, I I actually thought I accidentally shot Shelton. Because she was right next to me. And I I looked at her and I was like, like, didn't you see that RPG? I was like, no, dude. And I didn't see it. They just told me to keep shooting and I kept on shooting. So we kept going. Um after that, I that's when I started getting more of the cash with it. When we got to the golf guys, that's when I did a lot of my work, started working on. I remember who was that kid? Uh Gentile from golf.

SPEAKER_02 54:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 54:49

Uh I remember the first time I saw him, they brought him to me. And I couldn't even. The only thing I can see was the uh name tag, and I thought it was my gentile. Uh fuck, they got they got my guy, and I'm looking, and he was now a different guy, different uh gentili. And I saw his uh his jaw was pretty shot up pretty good. Yeah. And uh, and I one of the things I asked him was uh I was thinking about because they taught us like if they can't if they can't breathe, you have to do tracheotomy, or what's it called? Is it called tracheotomy?

SPEAKER_01 55:25

Yeah, crichothyrotomy, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 55:28

Yeah. Um I'm like, he can breathe. I'm like, thank god I'll have to do that. So and I patched him up, kind of triaged him, put him to the side, and then moved on to the other guy, the one, the one that we have evacued earlier today, early in the fight. And um, and he kept asking him for new ports, he kept asking for cigarettes, and uh and I'm like, dude, fucking let me finish up, man, and you know, let me fix your bandages, then you can I'll give you a couple of new ports. So after I fixed him up, here you go, dude. That's promised. Give you a couple of new ports. I lit up for him and I went back and you know, continue the fight. And he's smoking in the back of the truck with a new port. So already everybody was fighting.

SPEAKER_01 56:21

Dude, that's a full service corpsman, man. That's great.

SPEAKER_03 56:24

Yeah, it is. You know, it's how we roll, dude. You know what I mean? So we we after that, I talked to the uh that that squad with golf. They had uh they had a corpsman with him. I guess he froze. Uh he he kind of lost it. Uh I won't mention his name. Um he kind of he was kind of losing it. And I remember him, I remember talking to him. I was like, hey man, what's your fucking rifle? He's like, I don't know what happened to it. So I gave him my rifle. I was like, hey, while I'm working on some of these guys, because I was gonna work on the next guy that they brought in. But like while I'm working on him, go watch my back and watch that alley while I work on him. So I w uh I tried to go to the next one, and it was the it was the uh the Marine who was the KIA already. And I didn't know at the time. I looked, I was like, oh shit. You know, I couldn't eat, I couldn't eat for a minute after that, you know, after CNN. So and to be honest with you, after that um I was you know just trying to help out, you know, how to suppress the uh the enemy because I think once I didn't go with them hold on, let me just back to right.

SPEAKER_01 57:50

After I did all the patience, somebody came, somebody the the Bradley's, I think, or the uh the M113s, the track vehicles from the Army with the uh Army Colonel, and I cannot think of that colonel's name right now, but does it doesn't matter. The Army Colonel.

SPEAKER_03 58:07

Yeah, and they uh the evac the guys, right? I think they evaced them back to uh to uh um Capramati they call it now. Um they they evac them and I stayed out there with uh I remember going next to Pepper because I don't know if we were bounding, but I remember being next to Pepper and we were shooting, I was shooting on the alley, and and uh Pepper was uh laying on fire, and I could still see the RPG flew over our head and he didn't go off. And it hit the uh I think I remember him talking about it in the podcast. It was a dud, hit the hit the building. So Mark was like this pretty big. I was like, oh I remember what the hell? That was pretty lucky on that one, dude. That was the that was the dud. So we stay, I we stayed out there for seven hours.

SPEAKER_01 59:08

It was a long time, man. Yeah, easily six six or seven hours, maybe longer, but that's from from what I remember, it was it was six or seven hours.

SPEAKER_03 59:18

It felt like it was it felt long, but I didn't I don't know, I didn't even know it was paid.

SPEAKER_01 59:23

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 59:24

And I remember they I think um Rudy linked up his uh platoon, uh 81s. Was it 81s that linked up with us there?

SPEAKER_01 59:31

That was Rainmaker Platoon, yeah. That uh they they had taken contact just north and a little bit east of you when they made the turn by Saddam's mosque, and they took care of that and pushed through, cleared the area, and then linked up with one element from golf company's headquarters with Captain Bronzy, and then they pushed down and met you somewhere on Easy Street. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 59:56

I remember talking to Rudy during the time when once I saw him and I think the uh the Bradley's, I know the fight would be over. Yeah, you know, and that's when I'm like, all right, I can smoke now. I have to smoke my new ports, you know. I can smoke my new ports, so I started smoking. I thought uh Rudy was kind of giving a hard time. I'm like, hey man, where the fuck y'all been? I'm over there, I'm over there kicking ass. I was like, all right, cool, nice to see you. I was like, you good? I'm good. I'm good, I'm good, you know.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:33

If you like what you've heard, this is a multi part episode. Make sure you listen to the rest of the story.