ROBERT JENNINGS / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-BULLETIN Maj. Gen. Eric T. Olson discussed the future of the Hawaii-based 25th Infantry Division with Alpha Company soldiers.

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Troops thwart
efforts of enemies

This week continued to stay fairly quiet. With the elections approaching, I believe our enemy is trying to make sure he is around to cause problems. We acted on intelligence leads and managed to snatch up a few suspects in the middle of the night.

I'm happy to report that out of the 46 people we arrested last week, over 30 will stay in jail at least through the elections.

5 p.m. , Dec. 27 » Received word that three men were injured while placing a roadside bomb. Our interpreters called around to clinics and hospitals trying to locate them. The only lead we got was of a man released from a hospital with injuries associated with explosives. Two others were confirmed dead in another hospital's morgue. Hopefully, our enemy will continue doing us all a favor by eliminating himself.

9:45 a.m., Dec. 30 » A large explosion was heard right down the street from the patrol base. I went to the Company Operations Center to get the details. When I arrived, Company Commander Capt. Derek Bird, Lynchburg, Va., was already on the radio.

He informed me one of our engineer convoys had hit a roadside bomb. The quick reaction squad was alerted and the ambulance readied to provide medical assistance.

Just as the squad loaded the vehicles, the guard opened the front gate and a Humvee with both driver-side tires blown drove into the patrol base. As soon as the vehicle stopped, the driver let everyone know that he and an interpreter inside the vehicle were injured.

Immediately, soldiers removed them from the vehicle and assessed their wounds. I saw two soldiers cutting a boot off of the injured soldier as he was in some serious pain. Two other soldiers had the interpreter on the ground bandaging his leg. After their wounds were bandaged, the two of them were loaded in the ambulance. Sgt. 1st Class Austin Brown, Irvington, Ky., and 3rd Platoon provided the casualty evacuation (CASEVAC) security escort to the airfield, where medical personnel were standing by.

Just as the CASEVAC was leaving, the rest of the engineers entered the patrol base. Immediately, they were concerned for the soldier and interpreter that were injured. I talked to the squad leader and platoon leader and informed them of the extent of the injuries and assured them that they were being taken care of. They informed me that one more soldier had been hit by fragments. After assessing the soldier, medics bandaged him up.

This time, our soldiers escaped with minor injuries. Both soldiers and the interpreter are back to work. One of the soldiers will have light duty until his foot heals. The vehicle sustained minor damages. A few Alpha Soldiers helped change the two tires, and the vehicle was fully mission capable again.

12:01 a.m., yesterday » It's 2005; no fireworks, hot dogs with sauerkraut or beer.

12:20 p.m., yesterday » The commanding general of the 25th Infantry Division, Maj. Gen. Eric T. Olson, arrived at the patrol base. He took some time away from Afghanistan to visit the 2nd Brigade Combat Team.

After enjoying lunch with the soldiers, he stood up and spoke about where the 25th Infantry Division and U.S. Army-Hawaii are today and where we are going in the future. He fielded questions and finished by telling all the soldiers, "If 2004 was a year of sacrifice, because all soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan had sacrificed a lot this year, then 2005 is the year of change." He was referring to the Stryker Brigade and the new realignment of the 25th Infantry Division.

Well, 2005 is upon us, and 2004 is gone. The last year was so full it would be hard for me to try and reflect on everything.

The year started with the largest force the 25th Infantry had deployed since Vietnam; the Red Sox finally beat the Yankees; our commander-in-chief won a close election; and the year ended with one of the worst natural disasters in history.

What will 2005 bring us?

I can only hope that it begins with a successful election and a safe redeployment for all the soldiers from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team. I'll worry about the rest of the year when these two events are mission complete.

Happy New Year to everyone.

God bless, and aloha.

Gunner feels safer
on Iraq foot patrols

Qi Zhu

Zhu is a M249 squad automatic weapon (SAW) gunner in 3rd Squad, 3rd Platoon. Zhu said that he really didn't want to deploy for a year, but understood that he signed up as a soldier and it was his duty.

"When we first got here and started doing patrols, I was pretty nervous," he said. "I didn't know how I would react in an ambush or roadside bomb attack."

I asked him how he feels now when he goes on patrol. He said: "Ever since my squad got blown up back in May, sometimes I'll get a sick feeling in my stomach when we do mounted patrols. I don't mind dismounted patrols, but I'm always nervous on mounted."

I asked Zhu to give me a positive event he experienced. He said: "We were parked in this little village when this little girl, about 6 years old, came up and stood next to me. For some reason, it reminded me of when my little sister was that age. I don't know why, but I gave her a dollar and told her to go home. She came back with her little brother, so I lifted them into the Humvee. They were smiling because they thought they were getting special treatment."

Zhu finished his interview by saying hello to his mother, Sai Ying, and father, Li Gong, in New York and his little sister, Xiao Hong, now attending nursing school: "Don't worry about me, mom, I'll be home soon."