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NURISTAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan (March 19, 2008) - Mechanics from
Bravo Troop, 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment, have their work
cut out for them here.
The mechanics are stationed at Forward Operating Base Keating,
located in a valley between two snow-melt-fed rivers in the Hindu
Kush mountain range. Vehicle rollovers, flash floods, road washouts
and rock and snow avalanches are just a few of the hazards that
make maintaining vehicles a challenge.
During the winter, Taliban extremists and coalition forces alike
are forced to stay near their homes and bases, or face battling the
elements.
"One of the things about the snow, when it fell, it made things
very difficult around here," said Army Spc. Larry Gonzales, a
33-year-old construction and vehicle repair mechanic. More than
four feet of snow fell in the valley this winter. Combat Outpost
Warheit, which overlooks FOB Keating, had more than eight feet of
snow. The snow made movement extremely difficult.
"Mobilewise, airwise, waterwise -- everything was freezing up,"
Gonzales said. "The fuel even started to gel."
When the snow receded, soldiers on FOB Keating were able to
start on projects the snow had hindered. Gonzales and Army Spc.
Nathan Bolt-Ray, a mechanic in Bravo Troop, worked on a Humvee that
was damaged during a Feb. 22 firefight.
"We're replacing the radiator in the Humvee," Bolt-Ray said.
"The radiator took shrapnel from a (rocket propelled grenade)."
But enemy action is only part of what keeps the unit's mechanics
busy.
"As you can see by the bullet holes in a lot of these vehicles'
trunks, they've taken quite the beating," Bolt-Ray said. "The roads
-- I guess you can call them that -- also take their turn beating
on the vehicles."
But damage is damage, whether it's from bullets, rocks or the
elements. All that matters to the mechanics here is keeping the
unit's vehicles rolling.
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