Ft. Dix # 2 "Army Stuff"

After some troubleshooting - here are some photos of our training here at Dix. Most of the training areas won't allow cameras because they don't want the distraction, and generally enjoy other stupid rules here as well. However we were able to get some photos here at the base defense training. Basically there were targets that represented bad guys and good guys/civilians and we had to defend the "base" while artillery and grenade simulators were going off, loud "music", smoke, and other distractions. During the defense they would also have people become casualties and require first-aid and CASEVAC (Casualty Evacuation - getting them back to the base medical station). It was a pretty good exercise and thank goodness no one got hurt too bad. This was seriously a morning I was somewhat afraid to "go to work" since a number of our Navy and AF folks aren't exactly what I would classify as "proficient" with a long rifle.

Here below is my LT and myself doing our best to hold off the horde of invading green plastic men and trying to avoid killing (too many) civilians in the process.

Remember that part when I said no one got hurt "too bad"? Well there's this funny thing that happens when you have folks firing rifles in close vicinity to yourself. The brass tends to eject from the rifle and hit you. Sometimes it hits exposed skin. And sometimes it gets lodged between your neck and your protective collar. It happened when I was performing the role of a safety and leaned over to check one soldier's rifle to be sure it was on "safe". That's when the brass from the soldier next to him jumped into my collar and got lodged there for a good couple seconds before I could dig it out.

Now understand that if hot brass simply bounces off your skin without getting stuck/trapped - thereby meaning that it's only touched you for a split second - it will still leave a 1st degree burn. So when you consider that it was trapped in my collar for a full couple seconds you can easily understand why I ended up with 2nd degree burns and missing skin. These pictures were taken only a couple hours or so after the incident.

The good news is that with a little TLC, neosporin, and a week it's starting to finally turn pink and the exposed nerve endings are decreasing in number daily. Right now it's kind of like a spot of the most severe sunburn you've ever seen. Pink skin underneath thick peeling skin. YUM!!

OK - well that's about all the Army fun for tonight boys and girls. I'll try and get some more photos sooner rather than later. But for now it'll be 1am by the time I'm asleep and 6am is going to come quite early.

Take care for now - and if you haven't called your dear Mom it's just plain right down too late now.

SFC Hoyt - OUT.