32 Thursday July 28, 2011 The Journal

NDJ-E01-S2

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Sapper celebrates 21st with melon for a cake

Promotion means more focus for Andy

A LOCAL Royal Marine serving for the third time in Afghanistan says his job promotion means work is never off his mind. Combe Martin man Andy Thomas was promoted to a corporal just weeks before he deployed to Afghanistan with the Commando Logistic Regiment in March. As section commander, he is responsible for about eight men, including their kit, orders, vehicle and, most importantly, safety . He said: You cant ever really take your mind off the work. You are always expected to be thinking of the next step. Its tough but I feel like I have definitely fitted into the role. I am enjoying it so much and felt I was ready for the step up. Cpl Thomas married Karly Goodman, of Ilfracombe, in October last year, as part of a 25,000 prize wedding organised by the North Devon business community . His recent marriage and the birth of his first son Leyton has made this trip the toughest yet for the hardened marine. He said: Karly has been putting up photos of Leyton on the internet so I can see him. He is just about to start walking, so hopefully he will hold off until Im back on rest and recuperation. Im back for his first birthday . He was almost sitting up before, but you had to put something behind him, so it will be weird seeing how much hes changed. The Ilfracombe Comprehensive schoolboy first served in Afghanistan with 42 Commando, based in Plymouth, when he was 19. His trip was cut short when he was run over by a British Viking tank. He was left with a broken arm, bruising and haemorrhages in his eyes. He returned for the second time in 2008 with CLR. He said: It has been really busy and very hard work. The workload is ridiculous. Sometimes the lads embrace it, other times they dont. But the morale is great here. Wed all rather be at home but we all push each other to keep going. Andys parents, George and Christine Thomas, still live in Combe Martin. He gave his loved ones this message: To my wife Karly and sons Dylan and Leyton. Make sure the house is tidy for me when I come home, also Ill need lots of X-box time, so no cartoons! Only jokin, missing you loads and cant wait to see you on my R&R.

I STEP UP: Cpl Andy Thomas.

Close shave for soldier Adam

I CHILLED: Sapper Sam Kille. MOST lads would spend their 21st birthdays over-indulging, hanging out with family or having a tipple or two with friends. But for Sapper Sam Kille it was more a case of chilling out in the heat of the Afghanistan desert and pretending a watermelon was his birthday cake. The Chivenor soldier, originally from Kent, spent the milestone day at patrol base Pimon in Nad-e Ali, Helmand province, as part of his tour with 24 Commando Engineer Regiment. For one of the first times since he deployed in March, Spr Kille essentially had a day off, as the rest of his colleagues were away on a task. He spent the day with just a couple of Gurkha soldiers and later had some traditional birthday beats from the lads but no military rendition of happy birthday . He said: There was no cake, but we had a watermelon in the kitchen that day, so we just pretended it was my surrogate cake. It was a bit of a weird day actually as I was here without any of the rest of the troop. I actually got a bit bored with my day-off and wanted to get back to work. Spr Kille plans to celebrate in style with friends and family during his two-week break next month especially as all his post hasnt yet reached the remote base. After Afghanistan, he also has plans to spend his leave touring South America and South East Asia.

ARMY regiment 1 Rifles has had a tough time during its six-month deployment in Afghanistan. Barnstaples very own Adam Stansmore is serving with the regiment and was involved in one of its most dangerous encounters so far, as Tom Bevan reports.

IT was one of the most dramatic and prolonged firefights of the Rifles tour so far. Six hours, regular and effective enemy fire, a battle to save the life of an Afghan national, one Taliban captured and another shot by helicopter fire. And as the patrol team from B Company paused to reflect on the action of the night before, Rifleman Adam Stansmore from Barnstaple, was more grateful than most to be alive. The 20-year-old, who was shot at twice during the patrol, dodged insurgent-fired bullets which narrowly brushed past the side of his head. He said: I felt the air brush past my face when the bullet went past, so it must have been very close. I was the closest to the enemy out of the ten of us on the patrol. It is a hard feeling to describe and there is a massive adrenalin rush when you are being shot at. The drama began when the team, who are based out of PB Jeker in the Nahr-e-Saraj, Hel-

I IN BATTLE: Rifleman Adam Stansmore, left, and Corporal Jamie Tyson, both of 1 Rifles. mand Province, were taking part in a patrol around the area of Charda. There were another two patrols to the south of them that had begun to come under small arms fire. Cpl Jamie Tyson, who was leading the patrol, said: We then tried to cut the insurgents off by going to the north. They were already up there so we cut across the top of the urban area. This was about 5pm and we had already been on the ground for around half an hour. Insurgents were then picked up moving through various compounds, while the patrol came under further contact. They then arrived at a compound where the team carried out a search. This was the moment Rifleman Stansmore had his brush with death. He felt two single shots being fired at him. He said: There was no time to react but what I felt straight afterwards was controlled aggression. It took me a couple of seconds to realise what was happening but I knew I needed to get up and find out where it had come from. I wanted to go and get whoever did it but knew I couldnt just be all guns blazing. Waiting a short while after the shots had died down, the patrol continued to push to the north east.All three patrols on the ground at this time were coming under what is known as shoot and scoot fire. A call was made to the Apache team back at Camp Bastion for air support and one insurgent was subsequently shot by helicopter fire. The patrol then came across a group of around 40-50 locals, one of whom had been shot through the arm and chest as a result of enemy fire. The casualty had a collapsed lung and internal bleeding but was still alive. Rifleman Stansmore said: While we were trying to treat him we got shot at from three different firing points. There were a lot of civilians

around so we thought we would be safe but most of them then fled the area. We spent 45 minutes trying to keep this guy alive and the rounds kept coming in trying to deter us. But we could not identify the firing point. We tried to move him but sadly he did not make it. Rifleman Stansmore said he worked as hard as he could to help the casualty . He said: It was the first time I had dealt with a major casualty . We tried to help this person out but it was a lot harder than expected with enemy fire coming in. We were up to our chest in the irrigation ditch. After the incoming fire had died down when the Apache arrived, we had to try and get out of there. The civilian was not asking for our help but we felt a moral obligation to do something. We did everything we could for him but sadly it was not enough. His injuries were too severe to treat without the necessary equipment. This was now four-and-a-half hours into the patrol. Just as things had all gone quiet and the riflemen were heading back to their checkpoint, they noticed someone crawling through the irrigation ditches. Cpl Tyson said: He had gone firm in a marshy area and we could not see him even though we were right on top of him. We eventually spotted part of his hair and he was captured and taken back to Camp Bastion. There must have been at least ten fighters and we got two of them which is better than none. Most importantly none of my guys were injured.

Appeal target set for regiments return

By STEPH COCKROFT
scockroft@c-dm.co.uk

THE officer spearheading a wristband appeal for Chivenor soldiers serving in Afghanistan wants to raise 10,000 by the time the troops return home. The green bands are being sold to support 24 Commando Engineer Regiment, the bulk of which deployed for active service in March. And the first batch of 5,000 bands have already sold out more than two months before

the appeal is due to end. The regiments Second Warrant Officer Ray Glass, who spearheaded the campaign, said: We have already raised about 7,500 which is about double what I first hoped for. Im hoping by the end of the tour in Afghanistan in September we will have reached 10,000. I have been so surprised by how it has gone. There has been a lot of running around but to now have this much money is brilliant. The wristbands, which have

now been reordered, have been sold throughout pubs, shops and restaurants in North Devon. These include the Jour nal offices in Roundswell, Lilicos in Barnstaple, Alford Engineering, East & West bakery and Atlantic Village. The post office in Wrafton and the Chivenor Service Station have both sold out of wristbands. The proceeds of the wristband campaign will go towards three different causes. Half the money raised will go

towards 24 CERs welfare fund. This can help fund supplies for soldiers, and their families, who are injured or killed in active service. It can also be used to cover travel, accommodation and childcare costs for a soldiers family in the wake of a casualty . The rest of the money will be split between the Army Benevolent Fund and Little Bridge House in Fremington, which is run by Childrens Hospice South West.

During the regiments last tour of Afghanistan in 2008, two soldiers were seriously injured. Corporal Ross Austen from Barnstaple had to have his leg amputated after being injured in an explosion. And Sapper Gregg Stevenson also lost both his legs in an explosion in Helmand Province while on foot patrol. The regiment is due to return to Chivenor in September, after their six-month tour was extended by one month. To support the cause, e-mail raymond.glass641@mod.uk.

I CAMPAIGN: Ray Glass.

Picture: Mike Southon. Ref: BNMS20110405F-004_C