WWW.CAMPLEJEUNEGLOBE.COM
VOLUME 74, EDITION 30
The
GL BE SERVING CAMP LEJEUNE AND SURROUNDING AREAS SINCE 1944
Commandant, Sergeant Major of Marine Corps visit Marines in Afghanistan | 3A
2nd. Bn., 9th Marines
Battalion honors fallen heroes at memorial service | 9A THURSDAY JULY 26, 2012
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Photos by Lance Cpl. Paul Peterson
An engineer with Combat Logistics Battalion 8, 2nd Marine Logistics Group sweeps a gravel road for improvised explosive devices at Home Stations Training Lanes near Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune July 19. (Inset) A Marine provides aid to a casualty moments after the detonation of an IED during a training scenario for service members with CLB-8, 2nd MLG at Home Stations Training Lanes near MCB Camp Lejeune July 19. LANCE CPL. PAUL PETERSON 2nd Marine Logistics Group
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n exhausting blanket of heat encompassed members of Combat Logistics Battalion 8, 2nd Marine Logistics Group as they cautiously worked their way down an ominous gravel road riddled with simulated improvised explosive devices.
The exercise challenged the Marines and sailors to sweep the IED-infested training sites of Camp Lejeune’s Home Station Training Lanes in Holly Ridge, N.C., July 19 during a week-long training operation designed to prepare them for threats they may encounter on future deployments. “The considerable amount of IEDs in Afghanistan are found using visual indicators,
not necessarily the metal detectors,” noted 2nd Lt. Eric Slockbower, the Engineer Platoon commander with the battalion, as he described the need for the field training. “(Marines) would drive down a road, and maybe they would see a pile of rocks on the side of the road. Maybe the pile of rocks catches their eye, maybe it doesn’t, but they wouldn’t think twice about it.”
Slockbower stressed the need to look twice, which the Marines and sailors learned firsthand as they worked their way through the IED scenarios with sweat seeping through their uniforms and burning their eyes. They became more aware of the different threats each feature on the road may represent for the unit’s members. The service members learned to establish an understanding of
Marines, sailors set pace during 8th ESB hike
their surroundings, engage the dynamic nature of their environment and recognize the signs of a threat before it is encountered, explained Slockbower. The convoy successfully passed through a mock village, carefully clearing possible threats within the buildings as the lead vehicle pressed forward. The first explosion struck just beyond the edge SEE ENGINEERS 11A
News Briefs
CPL. BRUNO J. BEGO
2nd Marine Logistics Group
Photos by Cpl. Bruno J. Bego
(Above) Marines and sailors with 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group hike alongside Sneads Ferry Road aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune July 19. (Right) Lance Cpl. Donnell A. Brown, a supply administration and operations specialist with 8th ESB, 2nd MLG, holds the battalion’s guidon after completing an eightmile hike to Onslow Beach aboard MCB Camp Lejeune July 19.
Early in the morning, long before sunrise, more than 300 members of 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group formed up and prepared their gear for a hike July 19. Participants marched for more than four hours during the battalion’s physical training session, which was meant to increase the unit’s combat readiness and cohesion. “This is the first hike we have done as a battalion,” explained Maj. Robert L. Corl, the executive officer for 8th ESB. “We wanted to instill mental discipline and physical endurance.” During the hike, the Marines and sailors marched nearly eight miles carrying more than 50 pounds of gear from French Creek to Onslow Beach, where they met with their family members and friends to begin a unit sponsored family day. “We figured we were going to have fun at the beach with our family and friends, so why not, it would be good training,” Corl added. Corl said the hike is a way to increase the mental toughness troops need, and the family event improves the unit cohesion among Marines, sailors and their family members. Cpl. Benjamin L. Pritchard, a combat engineer who participated in the hike, explained why the event was a good way to motivate him and his fellow Marines and sailors. “I think the hike was a great exercise, although it took us a little longer than I thought it would,” Pritchard said. “Besides that, I think everyone got something out of it. “I am really motivated about finishing this hike,” he concluded. “It is not something that I personally enjoy doing by myself, but being there marching alongside my friends makes it a lot better.”
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