Nov 2, 2009 7:41 pm US/Central
Dangerous Daily Travels For Humvee Convoys In Iraq
BASRA, Iraq (WCCO) ―
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WCCO's Don Shelby and Tom Aviles were in a heavily armored Humvee and rode in a convoy with about seven others. There is always a fear that there are Improvised Explosive Devices, IEDs, still available to the people who want the United States out of Iraq
CBS
WCCO-TV anchor Don Shelby and photojournalist Tom Aviles are in Iraq this week. They're with the Minnesota National Guard's "Red Bulls"; the 34th Infantry is in charge of security in the southern part of Iraq based in Basra.
Shelby and Aviles took a Humvee ride with the soldiers, on a mission to deliver a very in-demand doctor to an Iraqi hospital.
After Saddam Hussein, the hospitals were nearly destroyed. During that time, the idea of being a doctor fell in disrepute and a lot of them left Iraq.
So in the convoy that Shelby and Aviles rode from the Red Bulls base to the Iraqi hospital were a number of doctors, including one of the best surgeons from Minnesota, Dr. Michael Rath, who is also in the National Guard. They headed to the hospital in Basra to meet with hospital officials.
On the way, they took a road that was protected by Iraqi security forces. The route to the hospital is very curvy and people are very careful about how they travel on these highways.
Shelby and Aviles were in a heavily armored Humvee and rode in a convoy with about seven other Humvees.
There is always a fear that there are Improvised Explosive Devices, IEDs, still available to the people who want the United States out of Iraq.
Before leaving the base, Shelby and Aviles were briefed by the sergeant running the convoy. He said the section of road they were taking had been known to have IEDs in recent weeks.
Shelby said that while traveling in the convoy, they did not know what they were in for but they trusted their drivers and they trusted the military men they were with. They also trusted the gunner who was positioned on top of the Humvee. He moved around anytime he suspected there could be a hiding place for anyone who could be firing upon the convoy.
That is the type of precaution that is taken everyday when anyone travels from the base to the city of Basra, where there is a heavy Shia population. The Shia doesn't want the United States in Iraq, except for a portion of the higher-educated.
The higher-educated Shia is the ones who are trying to meet with the doctors from the Minnesota National Guard. They hope to build the hospitals back up so they can get proper medical care for the people who need them in Basra.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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