| Staffords soldier thwarts roadside bomb attack |
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| Private Adam Mills, a sharp-eyed soldier from the West Midlands, has had an eventful start to his deployment to Iraq. Just days after arriving in theatre, Private Mills, 19, of 1 Staffords (part of the Staffords Battlegroup currently operating as Task Force Maysan) discovered an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) close to the roadside. |
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| On Monday 6 June 2005, Pte Mills' patrol was mentoring the Iraqi Highways Police while they carried out Vehicle Check Points. The patrol involved Landrovers and Warrior armoured vehicles. Having demonstrated how to conduct a Check Point, the Staffords platoon secured the location where the Highway Police were to carry out their check point. |
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Pte Mills described what happened:
"When we stop, we always carry out security checks of the area we stop in. I dismounted with one of the other soldiers and we began checking around each side of the vehicle. I saw a mound of earth that looked suspicious and went to look closer. When I did I could see a small antenna sticking out of the top of the mound and some wires buried on the side. I called over to the soldier checking the other side of the vehicle and he confirmed that it look like a roadside bomb. We warned everyone and then the Platoon Commander, Mr Shearer, gave orders for us to cordon of the area.I didn’t realise the the size of the device until it was inspected more closely afterwards. I was just doing my job and am very pleased that I was able to use my training to potentially save the lives of my fellow soldiers."
Lt Col Andrew Williams, Commanding Officer of 1 Staffords, said:
"Maysan is a complex and volatile area with little if any scope for on the job training. The vigilance shown by Pte Mills, only 4 days into his first operational tour, demonstrably proves the value of the pre-deployment training and the standards of our young men and women.
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