Posted on 07/01/2006 11:14:37 PM PDT by La Enchiladita
BALAD, Iraq – Soldiers from Logistical Support Area Anaconda in Balad saved the life of an abandoned, near-death baby June 9.
Staff Sgt. Donald White, patrol leader 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, and his team came across a box on the side of the road while on patrol.
Initially, he thought it was an improvised explosive device until he heard crying coming from the box. White made sure there were no wires protruding from the box and made sure it was not booby trapped. Then he picked it up.
“I ran as fast as I could, snatched the box off the ground and kept on running, thankfully nothing blew up,” White said.
White then asked Spc. John Sullivan, healthcare specialist, 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery, to evaluate the child and assess its medical needs.
The skin was literally hanging off the child and we could see it was massively dehydrated and malnourished. Sullivan told me we needed to get the child to a hospital right away and we jumped into the trucks and drove to the hospital as fast as we could, Smith said.
In transit to Balad Air Base hospital, Sullivan turned the air conditioning vents in the baby's direction so the air would cool the child.
I was nervous because I have never had to professionally treat a sick child before, Sullivan said. “(He) did not cry at all in the vehicle but his eyes rolled in the back of his head and I thought ‘oh my goodness he is starting to die on me.'”
By the time the patrol made its way to the Balad Air Base hospital the staff was already waiting for them when the vehicles pulled up. The Air Force medical staff treated the child by putting a feeding tube into him to replenish lost fluids. After a while the baby regained its strength and was in stable enough condition to be released. A civilian liaison with the Iraqi hospital in Balad was called and the child was released to hospital care.
White credits the success of the rescue to the members of his patrol, not just himself and Sullivan.
In all this mess of arresting people, killing people and getting blown up, finally something good has come out of it, Smith said. Hopefully as a result, God will bless us for the next few months we are here.
The baby was reunited with his mother June 19. The mother of the child told Iraqi Police she left the child in her daughter's care. The daughter was carrying the baby on the road near the LSA when she was chased by wild dogs and left the baby so she could run faster, according to reports given to Capt. Lance Awbrey, commander, Battery B, 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery.
Yes! I think that you are probably right in your suggestion that this was a "baby-killer" set-up. The intent was to have nervous troops shoot the box, and then there would be a news item on troops killing baby, &c.
If they had had the technology, the perps would have fashioned a suicide diaper onto the poor child.
Now tell me that mother is not going to have a soft heart for the AMERICAN GIs. They serve with HONOR.
Sure.
Mom give baby to daughter. Daughter places baby in box (for ease of carrying) when walking from point A to point B in Iraq. During walk, pack of wild dogs shows up and begins maneuvering against girl. Girl begins to run to escape but realizes she can't escape if she continues to carry the baby. Girl places baby on ground and runs to safety drawing off the dogs. Girl, after reaching safety, reports what she has done to family. Family organizes a return to the scene. (This may have taken some time.) In the interim, the patrol comes along and does it's IED/rescue the baby thing. Family goes to scene (which it can't locate exactly because the box is gone), unfruitfully searches, pronounces the child gone in accordance with Allah's will, and returns home to mourn. Sometime later, a report reaches the family that the Americans on patrol in the area had found a box on the side of the road with a baby in it and have taken it in for care. Cautious contacts are established with local authorities, and, after some checking, the mother and child are reunited.
That story works EXCEPT for the malnourished state of the baby. So...
Baby is starving because the mother cannot make enough milk to sustain it. Realizing it will die anyway and not wanting to see its end, mother (or daughter at mother's direction) places baby in box, carries box to a roadside where the Americans always pass, and places it there, commending the child's life or death to Allah. Americans come by, find the child, etc., etc.
If your second scenario is correct, it sounds like that moslem woman assumed-KNEW-Americans wouldn't hurt her child, and would in fact move heaven and earth to save him.
My thoughts exactly. If the wild dogs were so dangerous the daughter had to leave the baby and flee for her life; wouldn't the dogs have attacked the baby? Seems the "dogs" were not as dangerous as she thought.
They don't say whether it was a girl baby or a boy baby.
We love them all. I wonder if a girl would be more likely to be used as bait in such a scenario....
Bless him/her, I hope s/he hears the story when s/he is older and is one day introduced to his/her rescuer. :-)
Pinz
What a heartwarming tale. I know you'll want to read this. PING!
Bait for an IED? Yeah, that would be a new low for an already thoroughly dishonorable bunch of cowards
Which, of course, is nothing more than a plain statement of the truth.
The baby was reunited with his mother June 19.
"Bingo. Bet the bad guys had a video camera...no...bet the bad guys had alerted the news media to watch that box."
The CBS/NYT people were foiled again. They wanted to see someone blow the box up.
A terrible thing to say, but I could almost believe some of them would approve of something like this to get a story.
Aaargh! LOL!
Our Troops are so wonderful!!!
Thanks for reading more carefully. ;-)
Pinz
Thank you for taking it in a good spirit. Some don't like what they see as "correction." I see as "helping." LOL.
It was strange to me that they didn't indicate the baby's gender during the first part of the story, so I kept looking for it.
Isn't that blue bow in the baby's hair a sweet touch?
:^)
If I got upset over every correction I needed, I'd have run out of adrenalin years ago! Besides, you delivered very nicely. lol
Wouldn't it be awesome to hear about this boy making a positive difference in his country in 25 years or so?
Wonder if they'll name him Moses... ;-)
Pinz
Awww... "Moses"
;^)
How are you bearing up?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.