YOU WEREN’T SCARED WERE YA – KUWAIT 1991

On my arrived in Kuwait I had no idea of what to expect. Other than the MEMORY. That at each stage of the way. Someone was trying to scare the crap outta me. It worked very well I might add. By the time I arrived at work, the ol’ H…d mouth was pretty much silenced. My ears were tuned into every sound. My eyes darted around like a ferret’s. And my senses were tuned to each and every movement around me. I can truly admit that if someone had come up behind me and dropped a firecracker, I would have instantly soiled myself and then had a “jammer”.

At the same time there was work to be done. Much of which, at the outset, was preparing for more and more arrivals of management, engineers, construction specialists, security and ordnance personnel, trades, labour and firefighters. Was I scared? YES!

There existed virtually no infrastructure in Kuwait at that time. At the end of the war and as the Iraqis realized that they were in for an ass kicking, they basically stole everything that was not welded down. The country had been essentially stripped of all services such as water, electricity, and sanitation. Buildings were sacked of all equipment and furnishings. All stores had been vandalized of all their products. Food stores lost all of their goods. In addition, any and every vehicle that could be started. Was loaded with loot and headed north towards Iraq. Most of these vehicles were caught trying to leave Kuwait through a pass outside of Kuwait City.

There, only to be trapped by allied planes, and completely destroyed. The devastation was a mile or more wide and stretched for 50-60 miles up thru the pass. No one escaped. I believe the Iraqi deaths to be in the tens of thousands in this area. I managed to see this site during a tour of the destruction, at a time that the prevailing north-easterly winds had moved the smoke a little to the south. Some of the debris was starting to be removed by US armed forces personnel, in order to make the highway, north out of Kuwait, passable. It had been completely plugged by the devastation caused by allied planes on escaping Iraqis. .

We entered a wasteland. At the outset one whole team was dedicated to getting the infrastructure running. As well as, establishing safe areas to house the incoming workers. These were called “guest” houses and consisted of, completely looted and bare, apartment towers. The first two named Texas Towers and Al Ahmadi. I was assigned to Texas Towers and lived on the 12th floor (if I recall correctly).

At the same time, kitchens, that would ultimately feed 1000 of us, 24 hours a day, needed to be established. It was a monumental task and needed to be done now, not tomorrow. Every movement that was made was done with a sense of urgency. All the while, the place is burning around you, it is as dark as Halloween 24 hours a day, and the ordnance personnel are clearing areas around you by detonating explosive dumps and blowing up booby trapped bunkers. A little stressful? You think?

A little earlier I alluded to my bed in my small bare apartment that I had been assigned on arrival. The picture was taken about two weeks after arrival when I finally got a bed designed for a Pygmy. At the outset I slept on a floor, that is, for as much as I slept. It was eerie, noisy (someone was going to or coming from work each and every hour of every day, detonations were constant) greetings were shouted, high pitched and nervous, your senses were constantly on alert, and it was hot, hot, hot. Things as simple as providing drinking water.

With no potable water treatment facilities remaining meant that a plane load of bottled water had to be received each and every day. I’m talking a big ass plane carrying 60,000 bottles of water each day. Then add food, furnishings, bedding, housewares, linens and the base essentials in order just to live. These items had to be delivered each day in addition to any goods or equipment that was required to start dealing with the fires. It was highly organized chaos at the airport. Nothing was required for the future, everything was needed now! Logistics specialists manned the airport 24/7’s. They directed traffic in and out, unloaded airplanes and kept the flow moving. There was no respite. Nerves were jangled. We then we had to go to work to try and put out the fires and bring the oilfield back too normal.