Wednesday, July 20, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Never quit: Bomb scars fuel Fville soldiers determination to return to IraqBy JOHN MUNFORD Brian Doyne, a 1997 graduate of Fayette County High School, freely admits he knew the risk of his job with the U.S. Army as an explosive ordinance disposal specialist. He could have been killed, or severely maimed. Even if we do our job right, we could still come home in a body bag, or come home maimed like I did, Doyne said. Doyne, 26, was gravely injured Feb. 24 when two bombs blew up while he investigated a bombing in Tikrit that severely damaged an M-1 tank and injured its driver. After sweeping the area for more explosive devices, Doyne and his team leader began looking for clues that would help soldiers protect themselves and Iraqi citizens from similar explosives in the future. A second wave of bombs then exploded, sending Doyne 30 feet in the air and killing Daniel Gene Gresham of Chicago, who was Doynes best friend and team leader. Doyne remembers being in a fog right after the blast, looking at his severely damaged left arm and thinking to himself, This really sucks. Both his lower legs were shattered in several places and he knew he couldnt move. He couldnt even use his right hand to get a bandage, as it too was severely injured. He had lost so much blood on scene that medics couldnt start an IV until he was in surgery. Bomb fragments littered his body, and 80 pieces were taken out of his face alone before his first surgery at the hospital in Tikrit, which was a lengthy ordeal just to get him stabilized. For a few minutes, on the medic helicopter after the explosion, Doyne thought about giving up, particularly after learning of the extensive damage to his left eye. But it didnt take him long to figure out that would be the cowards way, and he would have none of it. My attitude about all of this is theres no point in me getting upset about what happened because I cant change it, Doyne said. Do I wish I had my arm back? Heck yeah. Do I wish I could see out of my left eye? Heck yeah, but I cant change that fact so why get upset about it or dwell on it? That way of thinking would serve him well in coming months, as he progressed from being bedridden while his legs healed in traction. Doctors said it would be six months before Doyne would walk, and hed always have a limp. That didnt sit well with Doyne and he pushed the medical staff to let him walk sooner than they wanted, particularly after progress he made on his own while recuperating at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington. Encouraged by his ability to stand on his own, one day he wanted a bottle of juice that was literally four steps away. He gingerly put weight on his legs and walked to get the bottle. It was the first step in a long recovery. There have been plenty of bad days while recovering, Doyne admitted. He reacts with distaste as he recalls being bound to a wheelchair. Learning to walk again was difficult, as he used muscles that had been dormant for months. But every time he thought about quitting, Doyne convinced himself to wait until tomorrow to quit. He recalled a sign he had seen in EOD training: The only easy day was yesterday. Armed with that spirit, he pushed himself harder than the medical staff at Walter Reed wanted. Instead of stopping where they wanted him to in physical therapy sessions, he stopped when the pain became too intense. Doyne is now an outpatient at Walter Reed and hes gotten the hang of his prosthetic arm, which allows him to do much more than he ever envisioned. He recently came home to Fayetteville for a visit with his parents, William G. Doyne and Linda Doyne. Mrs. Doyne has been staying in Washington with her son as there are still a few things he cant do yet, he said. And if the younger Doyne gets his way, after three or maybe four more surgeries, hell be pronounced fit enough to go back to his old job, one he dearly loves and misses. Thank God for plastic surgeons, Doyne said, recalling how one fragment tore through his mouth, creating a large hole on the right side. He has some scarring on his face and black areas where the fragments imbedded themselves in his skin. One of the fragments severed the optic nerve in his left eye. The force of the explosion blew out both his eardrums. While folks have said they admire him for fighting his way through physical therapy and for his military service, Doyne contends that he has done nothing special, and hes no different from the 500 or so other amputees at Walter Reed Medical Center: Hes doing it just so he can live a normal life. Anything less than the best I can give is failure, Doyne said. I will not fail. Its that simple. As for the physical therapy he still does, Doyne says it gets monotonous and hes ready to go back to his unit in Tikrit. A lefty all his life, hes learned to write with his right hand. He has adapted. Anybody who looks at me and says, youre an amputee, you cant do that, they have no idea how strong I am, Doyne said. You can look at me and say Im sorry that happened, but dont pity me or think my sacrifice was for nothing. The doctors have told him he wont run again, either. And Ill prove them wrong on that, Doyne said. Iraqi insurgents have taken to attacking first responders such as Brian Doynes group and medics, he said. Doyne noted that when he was hurt, insurgents had the chance to injure up to 20 Army men prior to his arrival on the scene, but they waited until Doyne and Gresham got there to detonate the final two bombs. Doyne was hit by a 155 mm mortar round that used 22 pounds of explosives and 60 pounds of pure metal. Doynes body armor saved his life. He also had on safety goggles and a Kevlar helmet. Doyne contends the risk of his life and others is worth it for the honor of being able to protect the lives of other servicemen and civilians, he said. His units duties included handling unexploded devices and artillery in addition to following up after raids to confiscate devices or parts used in bomb-making. After explosions, Doyne and his team would be called in to investigate what type of bomb was employed, largely so soldiers could figure out how to defend themselves from such explosives. It was a challenge every day, he said. You never knew what would happen. Doyne said he also never knew what he would encounter, because he could make an improvised explosive device look like a book. The deception involved is only limited by the imagination of the person making it, he said. The bombs are rigged with various detonation devices usually attached to artillery or mortar shells, Doyne said. His unit has also found professional bomb components used by insurgents, who smuggle them into the country to disrupt the coalition presence. Car alarms and long-range cordless phones have also been used to detonate insurgents bombs, Doyne said. And it wasnt just in the bomb-makers handiwork that the bombs got their deadly nature. It was also the tactics used by insurgents, who would plant hoax bombs specifically to study how Doynes unit responded to investigate them, he said. They tried to learn how we operated so they could kill us easier, Doyne said. They wanted to see if we did things exactly the same every time out. Doynes unit was on call 24 hours a day and thus handled no extra duties. Typically theyd get called out six to eight times a day with a minimum of an hour and a half spent on each incident. Each one, in turn, demands 100 percent of their attention the entire time, he added. Our attitude is wed rather get called out hundreds of times and have nothing happen than get called out one time and have somebody get hurt, Doyne said. Our main focus in EOD is saving lives. Doynes 2003 tour in Afghanistan played a big part in doing just that, as Doynes handiwork with clearing fields of landmines and disposing of weapons caches helped save hundreds of thousands of lives. What more could I want than to have that kind of impact on the lives of other people? Saving the lives of my brothers in arms, what more can you ask for? Since coming back stateside, Doyne has taken umbrage with the mostly negative media coverage of the war in Iraq. He cites the many times Iraqi citizens have encouraged him with a smile or thumbs up to recognize the U.S. troops, letting them know theyre there for the right reasons, Doyne said. The Iraqis will shake your hand and pat you on the back and say, Thank you, thank you, because those are the only words in English they know, Doyne said, adding that such displays of affection helped strengthen his resolve. It just made you feel good to have that visible show of support, he said. With all the negative media coverage, Doyne said he isnt surprised there are stirrings among the general public about finding a way to end the war in Iraq. If were doing such a bad thing over there, why did that many people come out to vote in the first Iraqi elections? Doyne said. Why did so many people risk their lives to get that purple stamp on their finger to show that they voted? Moreover, the Iraqi people are jubilant to have freedoms that Americans take for granted, such as the right to speak out against the government, Doyne noted. Infrastructure in Iraq is horrible with contaminated water, but U.S. forces are making a headway in fixing the problems, which doesnt happen overnight, he added. Electrical service is sporadic, too, and that is also being fixed, Doyne said. With no refrigeration technology, beef in Tikrit isnt sold neatly wrapped in styrofoam and plastic wrap packaging, but instead as an entire slab hanging in the middle of the store, wrapped with cheesecloth to keep away bugs, Doyne noted. Some of the water Doyne saw Iraqi citizens drink was grey, full of silt, bacteria and viruses, he said. Doyne hasnt yet inspected the armor he wore that day, and although he can freely talk about the explosion that nearly killed him, he fears seeing the damaged armor will make me relive that day. In all honesty, I shouldnt be here today, Doyne said. The reason I am sitting here is by the grace of God. Still, he wants to go back, to rejoin his unit, to dissect bombing incidents and safely handle discovered weapons caches so conditions can be made safer. I want to get back to my job, get back to doing something meaningful, Doyne said. Im here for a reason, Doyne said. Theres something Ive left undone or unaccomplished. |
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