On Bagram an amber alert means incoming fire. This is also the signal to head for the bunkers. The Big Voice came over the loud speaker. Tonight, it was feminine (a softer gentler voice for the war) coming through the midnight air alerting us of incoming rocket fire. On the way to the bunkers we heard the first explosion that was distant. You couldn’t feel the earth shake but a slight charge of adrenalin quickened my step towards the bunker.
The bunkers were about 5 ft. compounds with sandbags girdled around the concrete. Johnson was in the middle of the bunker with his helmet and body armor on. He didn’t say a word curled up in ball. I don’t believe he was frightened. He was alert, concentrating - perhaps saying a prayer. This was all serious.
There are stories and rumors that circulate about someone getting wounded or dying before they redeploy. The week before a rocket blew up a B-Hut killing a fireman in his sleep. More than a rumor more than bad luck just a fact of life in Afghanistan.
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