More Delays...More Sandstorms

Another day, another travel delay. We’ve now been in the Middle East for six days, and, still, we’re not able to meet up with the Louisiana National Guard. There’ve been a number of reasons for our delays – and all are beyond our control. Today, we can blame it on the weather. Visibility is only one mile, and that’s because there’s been another sand storm. After midnight, we rode to BIAP – which is Baghdad International Airport – on a “Rhino.” It’s something we’d hoped to avoid -  but it was really the only safe way for us to get here to catch a Blackhawk Helicopter. When we arrived, we were too early for our 8 AM check-in time. So – we had to wait outside. Yes, we waited outside for 6 hours … in the middle of a sand storm. We found some comfort by sleeping in a plywood box…it stopped the sand from getting into our noses and eyes. It was probably one of the most uncomfortable nights since we’ve been here – especially since we haven’t been able to shower in two days because of the bombings in Baghdad and our transportation. We and our gear are covered in sand. Luckily, we’ve  been able to move inside – even though there are weather delays on our flights. My skin is brown – not from the sun, but from the filth. I have never wanted to take a shower so badly in my life. Don’t feel bad for me though. There were also hundreds of soldiers sleeping on gravel and concrete – and in boxes like us. All of us are filthy and exhausted. The strange thing is – we’re only about 20 miles from where we’ve been the last few days. And in the center of Baghdad – we were constantly taking cover from incoming bombs. I even got hurt as I was running inside once – I fell and cut  up my hands and both knees, and I think I’ve sprained my wrist. But hey – I didn’t get hurt by a bomb. So, it could have been worse, huh? These things have really shaken me up, and I’m finding the soldiers here are taking everything in stride – although most are clearly frustrated with the travel delays. It’s not as hot as it has been – but the sand makes it just as miserable. There’s no running water here, so there are Port-O-Potties, and all of them are out of toilet paper. It’s mostly inconvenient because we’re having to blow our noses every 5 – 10 minutes to get all of the sand out. I’d never seen sand storms before this week.  They’re really quite amazing. Imagine the thickest fog you’ve ever seen – and it’s probably thicker than that. And, of course, instead of fog – it’s dirt… filthy dirt, flying through the air and sticking to everything in its path. It’s so disgusting. I am quite sure we won’t fly out today, and if we don’t, we’ll have to figure out what we’re going to do. I really don’t want to sleep in a box again, and I want to brush my teeth and shower. Goh – I hope my mom isn’t reading this. Haha. On a more positive note – I did meet some soldiers from Louisiana. One from Baton Rouge, and one from Carencro – which is right outside of my hometown of Lafayette. Both work here in the transportation center. They’ve been really nice, and we were able to talk about home – that’s always comforting. The closest showers, I just found out, are at Camp Striker. That’s a fifteen minute bus ride away, but if we leave – we may lose our chance for a flight if the weather clears. We’d also have to take our seven bags with clothes, cameras, computers, and body armor – and that’s just way too much to transport. I’m going to stop writing now, because I’m being negative. I can really understand what soldiers go through though. They’ve been through this so many times – it’s a non-event. They weren’t scared by the more than 30 bombs that hit near our base in Baghdad, they’re not phased by the dust storms, and they’re OK with waiting on their flights. I guess, like them, as I go through this process more – I’ll become more used to it. OH – another thing. There aren’t any public affairs officers here. So – we’re not able to even touch our cameras…that’s pushing our assignment WAY behind schedule. So – we are trying to figure out how we’ll continue to cover this story without video and without interviews. It’s time to put on my thinking cap – but I think it’s filled with sand too. Haha.

 

< Prev		Next >