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babylonsister

(170,964 posts)
Tue Apr 16, 2013, 04:56 PM Apr 2013

These Soldiers Did the Boston Marathon Wearing 40-Pound Packs. Then They Saved Lives.

I've been waiting to see this story~so many heroes!


These Soldiers Did the Boston Marathon Wearing 40-Pound Packs. Then They Saved Lives.
When the bombs went off, the Tough Ruck 2013 crew sprang into action.

—By Tasneem Raja
| Tue Apr. 16, 2013 12:49 PM PDT


Tough Ruck soldiers clearing a path to victims
Military Friends Foundation


At 5:20 a.m. on Monday, four hours before the Boston Marathon's elite runners took off, a group of 15 active-duty soldiers from the Massachusetts National Guard gathered at the starting line in Hopkinson. Each soldier was in full combat uniform and carried a "ruck," a military backpack weighing about 40 pounds. The rucks were filled with Camelbacks of water, extra uniforms, Gatorade, changes of socks—and first-aid and trauma kits. It was all just supposed to be symbolic.

"Forced marches" or "humps" are a regular part of military training, brisk walking over tough terrain while carrying gear that could help a soldier survive if stranded alone. These soldiers, participating in "Tough Ruck 2013," were doing the 26 miles of the Boston Marathon to honor comrades killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, or lost to suicide and PTSD-related accidents after coming home.



It took about eight hours for all of the soldiers to cross the finish line, some cruising nearly at a 13-minute mile, others coming in at a little slower pace. They were gathered near the medical tent behind the finish line, waiting for the elite runners to come in. That was the contingency plan in case anything went wrong—meet by the medical tent.

snip//

When the explosion went off, Fiola and his group immediately went into tactical mode. "I did a count and told the younger soldiers to stay put," Fiola says. "Myself and two other soldiers, my top two guys in my normal unit, crossed the street about 100 yards to the metal scaffoldings holding up the row of flags. We just absolutely annihilated the fence and pulled it back so we could see the victims underneath. The doctors and nurses from the medical tent were on the scene in under a minute. We were pulling burning debris off of people so that the medical personnel could get to them and begin triage."

"There was a guy behind me covered in his own blood, and I started to smell some smoke. I turn around to look and he's actually on fire."

Once the victims were transported away for further medical care, Fiola and the others stood guard around the blast area. "We switched to keeping the scene safe, quarantining the area and preventing people from entering. There was a guy behind me covered, just covered, in his own blood, and I started to smell some smoke. I turn around to look and he's actually on fire, from a piece of whatever caused the explosion. I saw the smoke coming from his pocket so I reached in and pulled it out. It was his handkerchief, on fire."

more...

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/04/tough-ruck-soliders-arredondo-boston-marathon

7 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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These Soldiers Did the Boston Marathon Wearing 40-Pound Packs. Then They Saved Lives. (Original Post) babylonsister Apr 2013 OP
Heroic and amazing. tblue Apr 2013 #1
The right people in the right place at the right time with the right supplies & training. . n/t annabanana Apr 2013 #2
Bless these Soldiers hearts, babylonsistah. Cha Apr 2013 #3
Outstanding! In total, Boston has reacted extremely well. delrem Apr 2013 #4
Brave men Libertas1776 Apr 2013 #5
All of our returning vets should be given the opportunity to use their skills and abilities in the freshwest Apr 2013 #6
Bravo to them and their bravery Blue Owl Apr 2013 #7

Libertas1776

(2,888 posts)
5. Brave men
Tue Apr 16, 2013, 07:59 PM
Apr 2013

thanks for sharing this. It's a shame our military isn't used only for genuine humane operations like helping out after disasters, natural or man made, and goodwill. i wish that, and only immediate defense of our country, was their only purpose. It's what they deserve. They deserve better than to be sent off to killing fields in the middle east. That aside, when a situation like this presents itself, these men and women always rise above and beyond, running into harms way to help those in need.

freshwest

(53,661 posts)
6. All of our returning vets should be given the opportunity to use their skills and abilities in the
Wed Apr 17, 2013, 04:25 AM
Apr 2013

public sector as different groups are trained for anything we need in infrastructure, education, medical, technical and social work. They have been trained, it's a waste to not use their abilty to organize here at prevailing wages and putting the country back in order.

Blue Owl

(49,934 posts)
7. Bravo to them and their bravery
Wed Apr 17, 2013, 01:04 PM
Apr 2013

Not to mention doing the marathon toting a 40-pound pack -- that is bad ass...

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