Class prepares Marines for dangers of IEDs
Marine Corps News
Story Identification #: 200541210631
Story by Lance Cpl. Sha'ahn Williams
MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va (Apr. 7, 2005) -- Improvised explosive devises are nothing new to the Marine Corps. They are one of the biggest dangers to Marines serving in Iraq.
Over the last year, the I Marine Expeditionary Force encountered more than 2,600 IEDs in Iraq, and with this in mind, Marines deploying to Iraq to recieve several classes about this guerilla warfare tactic.
The Explosive Ordnance Disposal team briefed two eight-man teams of Marines who are on their way to Iraq to train Iraqi police in urban military skills in a class here March 29.
The Marines are from different units all over the world.
Staff Sgt. Jason Perry, an EOD technician, instructed the class of senior enlisted Marines and field grade officers on the ins and outs of IEDs.
Perry first got everyone's attention by showing three videos showing IED attacks that were captured by amateur videographers.
After the videos, Perry explained the different types of explosions caused by the devices and the importance of having that knowledge.
"I break it down this way in the beginning to make the class more informative," said Perry. "The Marines get a lot of IED briefings, so I wanted to make it different by adding some background information that most classes don't offer."
After classifying the different types of explosive material into two categories, chemical and mechanical, Perry taught the Marines how an IED is made and how it works.
The most hazardous feature of the IED is the fact that they are difficult to recognize.
"An IED can look like anything, from a dog on the side of the road to a bag of trash," Perry said.
The IED is relatively easy to make and comes in different forms. "All the enemy needs to make one is the items and the intelligence," he said. "There are pieces of ordnance all over the war-torn neighborhoods in Iraq."
Once Perry was sure the Marines understood what he had covered, he moved on to hoax devices used by Iraqi insurgents to trick Marines into moving near the "real" IED.
"Sometimes they will place something that looks like an obvious IED on one side of the road so a convoy will move to the opposite side to avoid it. Once the convoy is near, the enemy will detonate a real one causing the intended damage," Perry said.
Suicide bombers and the vests they use was the next topic covered in Perry's training.
"Some are handmade, while others - believe it or not - are factory made," said Perry.
A brief lecture on international terrorist trends was also included.
"It's important to know what types of attacks are being made in different parts of the world because the terrorists copy one another all the time," said Perry. The Tiger suicide vest that first popped up in Thailand, suddenly appeared in Iraq a few months later," he said.
At the end of the class, Perry told the Marines what to do if they suspect a device is an IED, and what to do to combat IED attacks.
"Be a hard target," he said.
Marines who are alert and look ready to fight back are hard targets.
Perry pointed out that wearing protective gear such as a helmet, vest and goggles protect Marines against fragmentation and have made a significant impact on lessening casualties.
The Marines appreciated the information they learned in Perry's class because they understand the menace presented by IEDs.
"The more classes we can get the better," said Capt. Neal Fisher, training officer for 3rd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, Twentynine Palms Special Force Police Training Team.
Roadside IEDs are causing a significant amount of casualties in Iraq. Educating Marines about them, how they work, and how to avoid them could save lives.
"Any education we can get to learn to counteract IED attacks will be helpful, because IEDs are one of the primary killers of Marines and soldiers," Fisher said.
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