|
1st Cavalry Division Commander MG Allen with Col. Jane Prather and some of her staff inside Craig Joint Theatre Hospital. They were each presented the Commanding General's Coin for Excellence.
|
I was hoping my last two weeks here would be quiet and uneventful. No such luck. Last week we received seven French coalition soldiers from the tragic Afghan National Army shooting outside of Kabul.
These casualties were brought in directly from the point of injury
compared to the usual casualties this hospital receives from other
smaller forward surgical teams (FSTs). This means that they were bloody
and still traumatized. The hospital staff here showed their true colors;
providing the best healthcare in the world! The French Ambassador, the
French Minister of Defense and many General Officers came to the
hospital over the past several days to visit the survivors of this
tragedy. I am the Task Force Commander for my last two weeks here, so no
rest for the weary.
The physical aspects of readying to leave are many. Packing, saving files, cleaning up offices and living spaces and moving into transient housing. We were authorized two duffle bags and a ruck sack to come over here and are authorized four duffle bags, a back pack and the ruck sack to carry home. I can't carry four duffle bags myself so I am shipping a lot home. It is astounding how much you can accumulate over a year, even over here.
We have a two-week overlap with our replacements; that is too long but we are not allowed to leave early. We'll be stepping over one another, but it is a necessary step before coming home. I will excel at this step. It will take about two weeks to get home and out process from active duty. I'm sure these two weeks will provide lots of down time in which to catch up on some badly needed sleep. See you all soon!
