Posted on Apr 7, 2015
What was your best and worst living conditions during a deployment?
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Example:
Worst: FOB Hope, Sadr City, Iraq. I was in a port-o-potty for a week after sharing some Iraqi food.
Best: Bagram Airfield Afghanistan. I had my own room about 100 feet away from the building I worked in.
Invite others to respond by typing @name
Worst: FOB Hope, Sadr City, Iraq. I was in a port-o-potty for a week after sharing some Iraqi food.
Best: Bagram Airfield Afghanistan. I had my own room about 100 feet away from the building I worked in.
Invite others to respond by typing @name
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 14
Iraq dirt in OIF 1 was the best and worst living conditions I ever had during a deployment.
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SSG Christopher Buck
Amen CAmenities had to sleep on the hot hood to HMMWV. I was the gunner, and I couldn't sleep on my 2" troop strap. The blast plates were a joke as well. The only thing they covered well was the bezel rack when they were closed. It's demotivating to have to count the paint chips after a mission to see if they were still serviceable for the next mission. Finally got a cot after we setup home base at Camp Speicher outside Tikrit. No hot meals, no showers, and water rationing. In 140 degree weather. Supply guys said it was too dangerous to get supplies, like water, but we were running missions I'm the same area every day.
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I was on this side of the flowers each time so I have to say...All of them are/were the best.
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I am sure all the CIB / CMB holders are having a good laugh right now.
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SSG Richard Reilly
Most those CIB and CMB were next to me in the port-o-potty. That is from a CAB holder. *winkyface*
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I would say the USS Anchorage. The Captain wouldn't run all the a/c generators on the ship. We were on the coast of Africa by Somalia in the summer time. The berthing was 100deg all the time. Of course up top where the Captain was, the a/c was kicking hard.
We also had a sewage back up issue in the heads. we pushed through a massive pacific storm that lasted for a couple days. Everyone was sick from the rocking. Our toilets and urinals all backed up. Because of the excessive rocking, the sewage escaped the head and flowed into and down into the berthing areas. Several Marines had sewage pour down the latter well onto their racks. Not to sound too gross, but the added smell with the tossing of the ship, made it harder to hold it down.
The best was Okinawa 96. I was the sr Cpl on my deck and had my own room for the deployment.
*please note this was a horrible storm. There was injuries that occurred from the rocking. People tossed from their rack, down latter wells and a cook slid into a moving mixer and almost lost a hand. When it was over, there were foot prints on the bulk head.
We also had a sewage back up issue in the heads. we pushed through a massive pacific storm that lasted for a couple days. Everyone was sick from the rocking. Our toilets and urinals all backed up. Because of the excessive rocking, the sewage escaped the head and flowed into and down into the berthing areas. Several Marines had sewage pour down the latter well onto their racks. Not to sound too gross, but the added smell with the tossing of the ship, made it harder to hold it down.
The best was Okinawa 96. I was the sr Cpl on my deck and had my own room for the deployment.
*please note this was a horrible storm. There was injuries that occurred from the rocking. People tossed from their rack, down latter wells and a cook slid into a moving mixer and almost lost a hand. When it was over, there were foot prints on the bulk head.
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Best: Probably my CHU at Camp Virginia, Kuwait. I had my own room, air conditioning, and pay-as-you-go internet. The chow hall was a short walk and so was the Green Beans.
Worst: Transient housing at FOB Kalsu. When were running convoy escort missions past Baghdad this is where we stayed. They were tents that some sort of foam had been poured over the top of. Inside were some of the nastiest cots I'd ever seen. They were more brown than the green they should've been. The ground was muddy and the whole thing stunk like TCNs. I'm sure it was still a lot better than what some of the units stayed in during the invasion.
Worst: Transient housing at FOB Kalsu. When were running convoy escort missions past Baghdad this is where we stayed. They were tents that some sort of foam had been poured over the top of. Inside were some of the nastiest cots I'd ever seen. They were more brown than the green they should've been. The ground was muddy and the whole thing stunk like TCNs. I'm sure it was still a lot better than what some of the units stayed in during the invasion.
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SSG Richard Reilly
I know Kalsu those were our primary living for a couple of months. during my second deployment. without the foam though.
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Worst - out of a soft-skinned Hummer from Kuwait to Baghdad calling in airstrikes along the way...Worst part of that deployment was the first bus we happened upon after insurgents decided to eliminate their own that were trying to escape.
Best - Out of a soft-skinned Hummer from Kuwait to Baghdad calling in airstrikes along the way...Best part of that deployment was that training really does kick in and our commander got us a ride home on a Ranger-filled C-130.
Best - Out of a soft-skinned Hummer from Kuwait to Baghdad calling in airstrikes along the way...Best part of that deployment was that training really does kick in and our commander got us a ride home on a Ranger-filled C-130.
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Best. Living out a ruck sack in the middle of the desert during DS/DS. Worst. Living in the Hadji tents they set up at King Fad intl airport prior to push north. Tents were soaked in some kind of kerosene/diesel. If the smell didn't make you nauseous wondering what kind of critters would crawl up thru pallet floor in middle of night (no cots)
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Best: BOQ, RAF Mildenhall, UK. Worst: Quonset hut without air conditioning on Incirlik AB, Turkey (in the summer). I know all the Army and Marine guys will have a good laugh at this, but that's the way it was. Being an aircrew member had its advantages.
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SSG Richard Reilly
Slight laugh. I mean I went camping with the cub scouts in a more extreme place...lol I will say though that we all could have joined for the Air Force and been on a crew too so self inflicted wound there.
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Worst: FOB Shank, Logar Province, Afghanistan. We had to jump 9 times in 5 months due to IDF. Removing sandbags and re-sandbagging every time. No working latrines, no electricity, 3-4 people in a second floor RLB metal container without ac in 120 deg temps. Not fun.
Best: Bagram AB, Afghanistan. I had my own room in a wooden unit with AC and a door lock. 5 minute walk to one of the many dfacs. It even had a lan cable for sniper hill.
Best: Bagram AB, Afghanistan. I had my own room in a wooden unit with AC and a door lock. 5 minute walk to one of the many dfacs. It even had a lan cable for sniper hill.
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Lived out of my RV...er 4 litter ambulance during Desert Storm....most enjoyable but probably worst conditions..... Best was OIF stationed at Balad Theater Hospital in Iraq.... lived about 400m from the hospital, never left the wire...work was draining tho.... Best overall deployment was OEF.
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