Memoirs of an Outlaw: Life in the Sandbox

Chapter 19: Vehicle Bomb

The initial assault on Fallujah was finally over, and we were allowed to go back to Camp Baharia to clean up and get some chow. Everyone seemed to be happier. We were back to a semi-normal routine of showers, food, internet center, and games. On top of it all, we were all now officially combat veterans with loads of stories to tell and things to brag about.

The company mission went back to the normal routine of vehicle checkpoints and MSR patrols. However, this particular day and this particular patrol would be the first of many to remember.

Third Platoon had gone out on a routine patrol. While on patrol through one of the small towns outside of Fallujah, one of the scouts noticed artillery guns lying on the side of the road with spent artillery shells all around them. Near the artillery pieces, the scouts noticed a couple of Iraqi civilians using torches to cut up the guns into pieces, which they would take back home. It was brought to the attention of the platoon commander, Lieutenant Rowell, who then gave the order to halt the patrol. Lieutenant Rowell directed his scouts to dismount the vehicles and take pictures of the artillery guns and ammunition to send to back to the COC. He had the vehicles pull off to the side of the road and set up a defensive perimeter around the site.

Sergeant Leuba, the scout squad leader, directed his scouts to fan out to survey the area. Leuba had Corporal Afraidofbear take pictures of the guns while Corporal Justin Hall spoke with the Iraqis to figure out what they were trying to do. The platoon sergeant, Staff Sergeant Ron Ducharme, had placed his vehicle at the far end of the site closest to the road. Rather than have his scouts deploy with the rest of the platoon, Ducharme instructed his scouts to stay put and provide vehicle security.

About ten minutes went by with no sign of any car traffic. Little did they realize there had been a car trailing their patrol for quite some time. Afraidofbear was taking pictures of the guns and was wrapping it up while Hall was still talking with the Iraqis. One of the Iraqis said they had permission to cut up the guns and presented a piece of paper to Hall. Still suspicious, Hall went up to one of the guns and tried to open up the breach to see if there was still a round in the gun. The last thing he wanted was one of these guys taking home an artillery shell to use as a future IED. He could hardly budge the hatch open, so another one of Hall’s scouts came over and began banging on it with a rock in hopes of prying it open.

Suddenly, the car that had been following them from a distance began to get closer. It seemed as if it was going to continue on a path past the platoon until it made a left onto the street Blue Platoon was near.  Staff Sergeant Ducharme made his scouts aware of the situation and told them to stop the vehicle. The scout section leader in the vehicle, Corporal Scott “Vinny” Vincent, put out his right hand in the stop gesture (showing your left hand is considered rude and offensive). The driver of the vehicle came to a halt by the side to the LAV and started yelling something. Vincent informed Staff Sergeant Ducharme that the driver was trying to say something. Ducharme leaned over slightly in his turret and propped the right side of his helmet off of his head so he could hear what the driver was trying to say.

Those unforgettable words were "Allah Akbar" (God is great).

In the split second it took for the driver to yell those words, the vehicle disintegrated into a ball of flame. A vehicle suicide bomber, our company’s worst fear, had come true.

Hall heard the explosion in the distance. For some reason though, it didn’t register that it was one of their vehicles. He thought that the artillery shell in the gun had gone off from them banging on it and presumed that he was dead or dying. When he realized that wasn’t the case, he turned around and saw Ducharme’s vehicle destroyed. The engine block was skidding down the road and shrapnel from the explosion was flying everywhere. One of the Iraqis began screaming in pain because a piece of shrapnel had hit him. Hall took off running back toward Ducharme’s vehicle to try to provide any help he could. Unfortunately, it was too late. His good friends Vincent and Wilfong were killed by the blast.