5 Marines die, 3 missing in Iraq accident

[sabra]

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/news/breaking_news/14253343.htm

5 Marines die, 3 missing in Iraq accident
Associated Press

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A U.S. military truck rolled over in a flash food in western Iraq's Anbar province, killing five U.S. Marines, injuring another and leaving three other troops missing, the military said Monday.

The military said it was "using all the resources available" to find the two Marines and a sailor who were missing following the Sunday accident.

The rollover of the seven-ton truck appeared to be an accident and was "not a result of enemy action," the military said.

[mdmc]

1. My prayers are with all that have dies in this war

sad news

[saigon68]

32. "BRING EM ON" shouted the AWOL CHIMPANZEE

[400Years]

2. Is this in addition to the 4 that was announced earlier today?

[sabra]

7. yes. 9 (maybe more) US Soldiers have died this weekend in Iraq

[400Years]

20. that sucks

[Missy M]

3. Another tragedy supposedly "not a result of enemy action"....

According to the military most deaths are what appear to be accidents, not enemy action. Truth is hard to come by with this administration.

[Roland99]

4. That accident wouldn't have occurred if they weren't in Iraq.

That's how I look at it.

[alcibiades_mystery]

17. That's simply not true

Thew majority of reported deaths in Iraq are still a result of hostile fire, and are reported as such.

[BOSSHOG]

5. There's good news for "conservatives"

Deaths were not a result of enemy action. So that should make the fascist constitution hating bastards happy. And you know limbaugh will tell his audience just more deaths from highway accidents. No big deal to pigs with "conservative" hearts.

[rocktivity]

37. GOOD NEWS!

An IED couldn't possibly have caused the truck to overturn because they can't detonate under water!

:party: (This post is part of the George Bush GULF WAR GOOD NEWS initiative.)
rocknation

[Bozita]

6. flash flood rolls a 7 ton truck -- WTF?

[coalition_unwilling]

9. My thoughts exactly -- when a vehicle of that size "rolls,"

it's usually (though not always) the result of sudden, evasive action(s) like, for example, swerving to avoid enemy fire. Even if the swerving successfully evades the attack, the resultant instability can and probably does lead to fatalities.

However, since we now have the Iraq equivalent of Vietnam's "5 O'Clock Follies" going on, I doubt we'll ever know the truth about this or many other similar "accidents" whose casualties are not included in combat deaths.

[alcibiades_mystery]

14. Non-combat fatalities are included in the total killed number

This has been demonstrated again and again.

[coalition_unwilling]

22. I've heard exactly the opposite, i.e., that fatalities from

"traffic accidents" are not included. But I have to admit, now that you mention it, that I have never drilled into the topic in detail.

As a side note, I've heard that if a soldier suffers life-threatening wounds in Iraq but is airlifted out and dies abroad or even en route, his death is not included as a fatality of the war.

However, now that I think about it, both of these perceptions on my part may be "urban legends" I've somehow imbibed from too much surfing of Democratic Underground and other sites.

What's your take?

[alcibiades_mystery]

27. Both propositions are absolutely false

Here's a web site to confirm it:

http://www.icasualties.org/oif

Once there, you can check this page:

http://icasualties.org/oif/Dow.aspx

It definitively puts #2 to rest. If you check the following page, you get a breakdown of hostile v. non-hostile death counted in the total:

http://icasualties.org/oif/HNH.aspx

In other words, both the notion that non-hostile deaths aren't counted and the notion that soldiers who die outside of theater as a resault of injuries sustained in theater aren't counted, both these notion, I repeat, are flat out false, and demonstrably so. Unfortunately, they are constantly sdpread on these boards by people who are either delusional or outright liars, so it's not surprising that anyone would pick up these ideas.

[coalition_unwilling]

31. Thanks for the links. I'm going to do a little more reading, but 1 final

question: are soldiers who come home from Iraq and commit suicide (I've heard of several such stories on KPFK in Los Angeles) counted in the stats? I would imagine not, but just wondering.

[alcibiades_mystery]

33. It has never been the practice

of any casualty counting in the history of the world to include soldiers who 1) are injured or 2) hurt or kill themselves after they have left the theater of operations (unless they are en route, as the Marine plane that crashed in Canada on its way back from Lebanon in the 1980's).

This for fairly obvious reasons: while it is clear that PTSD is a huge contributing cause to post-war suicides, it would be difficult to argue that the war is the efficient cause, and the government's not really in the business of making such determinations. So, for example, if a Vietnam veteran kills himself today, should we put his name on the Wall? Why? Even if he was diagnosed with PTSD, couldn't there be other triggering events (his wife left him, his son died, he was diagnosed with inoperable colon cancer, etc.?). These are the thorny questions one would have to ask - and make case-by-case judgments on if such a form of accounting for war dead were instituted. As it stands, the accounting for war dead requires, as a minimum condition, that those counted are 1) killed in theater or 2) sustain injuries in theater that can reasonably be attributed as a physical cause of death (getting paralyzed in theater and dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound months later wouldn't count). We should of course do everything in our power as a society to support and sustain those wounded - psychologically or physically - when they return. No question there. But to count post-war suicides as war deaths gets you into very troubled territory, and is probably wisely excluded.

[coalition_unwilling]

35. Thanks for that sane explanation. I'm active in local

anti-war activities, and having this type of information gives us greater credibility to debate the serious and profound policy implications of BFEE's foreign policy (or lack thereof).

I do find it somewhat suspicious that, after all this time as occupiers, there has not been a single reported U.S. POW (after the "fall of Baghdad"). But my time to research is limited, and it's something I find myself wondering about from time to time.

[0007]

8. Pile 'em higher!

Grass Bush

Pile the bodies high in Austerlitz and Waterloo Iraq
Shovel them under and let me work--
I am the grass; bush; I cover all.

And pile them high in Gettyburg Baghdad
And pile them high in Ypres and Vedum Mossoul and Al Fallaujah

Two years, ten years, and passengers ask the conductor:
What place is this?

I am the grass bush.
Let me work.

Carl Sandburg


Support the war - Donate a Son a daughter
The GOP working for a better America
God Bless America

[cliss]

10. I have 2 questions:

1) if there was a flash flood in Anbar province, can we verify this on Yahoo news, or some other weather web site? Just call me skeptical....

2) What was a sailor doing in Iraq? I thought they only worked for the Navy.

* * *

Every time you read something from the Pentagon, or some news release, it's 98.23% lies, or half-truths, or distortions.

[TomInTib]

11. They have snipers driving trucks in convoys, as well.

But to be fair, there are land-based Naval personnel.

While a river patrol boat pilot in SE Asia, I often participated in long-range recon because of my "skill sets".

[tabasco]

19. Thanks for your service!

I'm glad I was too young to be sent to that hellhole.

[atreides1]

12. This might help

1) There was rain earlier in the day, not sure how much fell.

2) Sailors are usually assigned as medics in Marine units.

[alcibiades_mystery]

15. Sailors serve as corpsmen (medics) for Marine ground units

The Marines don't have Marine medics. Instead, their medics (called corpsmen) are US Navy. The Marines are still part of the Department of the Navy.

[catmandu57]

16. For #1 try weather underground

for #2 the navy provides many personnal in support mode mostly, medics come to mind.
In this clusterfuck though, they're scraping for soldiers and using members of other services in roles they wouldn't normally be used for.

[alcibiades_mystery]

13. Jeez, 17 already this month

5 yesterday: 2 Apache pilots, 2 Army killed by roadside bomb, Baghdad, 1 Army non-hostile
4 today: 3 Marines, 1 sailor killed in action, Anbar
8 more today: 5 Marines killed in flash flood truck turnover, 3 more missing (meaning their bodies haven't been recovered from the water.

17 already for April...

[ECH1969]

18. I remember when we lost something like 35 at one time

last January when a transport helicopter got caught in a sand storm.

[Beaverhausen]

21. Ah yes, the 'cakewalk' continues

:cry:

[dave29]

23. what about all the soldiers that didn't die?

c'mon already, get with the propogram

[RebelOne]

24. CNN reporting that 9 are dead and 3 missing.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/04/03/iraq.main/index.html

[alcibiades_mystery]

29. You have to actually read the article

Two separate incidents:

1) 3 Marines and 1 sailor killed in hostile action, Anbar Province
2) 5 Marines killed in truck rollover

That makes nine dead. In addition:

2 marines and 1 sailor missing in truck rollover (that's the three missing, although these are surely dead as well).

[endarkenment]

25. 8 more soldier's families will get shorted on their death benefits. nt

[UpInArms]

26. ...

:cry:

I weep for these soldiers and their families, for my lost country and for all the dead and dying - the losses just seem to be piling up - with no end in sight.

:cry:

Period	US	UK	Other*	Total	Avg	Days	
5 	189	5	2	196	1.8	109	
4 	715	13	18	746	2.35	318	
3 	579	25	27	631	2.92	216	
2 	718	27	58	803	1.89	424	
1 	140	33	0	173	4.02	43	
Total	2341	103	105	2549	2.3	1110

[cantstandbush]

28. G-Damn the Bushbots!!! This invasion wa wrong from the beginning

and most Bushbots are too arrogant to admit the mistake of invading Iraq and they are compounding this colossal imperialistic blunder and the only people paying are the soldiers and their families, many of whom continue to lie to themselves that their children and loved ones are dying for a noble cause.

[cantstandbush]

30. Is "non-cambat" supposed to make us feel better? STFW!!!

[gordianot]

34. It is so easy to forget we are talking about human lives.

Someday there will be another memorial in DC. I hope this one also addresses the people who sent us there.

My concept for this memorial is a giant W which asks "WHY"?

[UrbScotty]

36. ABSO-F**KING-LUTELY HORRIBLE!!!!!!!

Had to get that off my chest.

[RedEarth]

38. U.S. Announces Deaths of 9 American Troops

Baghdad, Iraq - At least nine American troops died in two incidents in the insurgent stronghold of Anbar Province, including four who were killed in a rebel attack and at least five who died when their truck accidentally flipped over, the American military command said today.

Three Marines and one sailor were killed on Sunday in the insurgent assault, the military reported, offering no further information. It was the largest number of American deaths in a single attack in more than a month.

In another part of Anbar Sunday, a flash flood flipped a seven-ton troop transport truck, killing five Marines and wounding one, the military said today. Two Marines and one Navy corpsman also went missing, officials said. It was one of the deadliest military accidents this year.

The truck was part of a logistics convoy, the military reported, and clarified that the vehicle had not come under insurgent attack before the rollover. Two of the missing troops were assigned to First Marine Logistics Group and the third was assigned to Regimental Combat Team 7, the military authorities said.

The American deaths were reported as representatives of Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari frantically lobbied Iraqi political leaders in an attempt to salvage his nomination to retain his post in the next government.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/03/world/middleeast/03cnd-iraq.html?hp&ex=1144123200&en=13f779c38bdbd5e6&ei=5094&partner=homepage

[Carla in Ca]

39. I can't believe * through out the first pitch

at a stadium instead of a prison yard.

[patrice]

43. Out having fun while the kids die in his war.

Don't you bet some of those who have died 9/11/01 to the present would like to have been at that baseball game.

[jaxx]

40. 2342 dead now in Iraq.

And that fool in the WH no longer calls it his war on terror. I wonder why?

[Fridays Child]

41. In the meantime...Play ball!

Life is good.



:mad: :mad: :mad:

[LynnTheDem]

42. Dead for a politician's lies.

"If I have a chance to invade….if I had that much capital, I’m not going to waste it." (1999)

"One of the keys to being seen as a great leader is to be seen as a commander-in-chief." (1999)

"No president wants war." (2006)

-george w. bush; war criminal, warmonger.

And MFing liar who's lies have killed 2342 American men & women. So far.

[gristy]

44. How does a flash flood "wound" a marine?

Just wondering... :shrug:

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

46. a 7-ton truck flipped in a flash flood?

i wonder if these guys were actually on that chopper that crashed (shot-down?)

[Oversea Visitor]

47. ROFL

7 tons truck..... FLIP...... by water
Which DAM burst there
Iraq woh desert country..... very hard to imagine

[Breeze54]

48. They did have severe flooding in Iraq in Feb. Could it have....

happened again? Where these soldiers were located?
:shrug:

IRAQ: Thousands of families still displaced after flooding
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=51824&SelectRegion=Middle_East&SelectCountry=IRAQ

BAGHDAD, 21 Feb 2006 (IRIN) -

Nearly 6,000 families forced to leave their homes in the wake of heavy flooding
in northern and southeastern Iraq earlier this month remain displaced,
mostly due to the destruction of their houses.

“The devastation by heavy rains of hundreds of houses countrywide has worsened
the situation and prevented families from going back,
forcing them to stay in improvised camps or with relatives in safe areas,”
said Ferdous al-Abadi, spokeswoman for the Iraq Red Crescent Society (IRCS).

Nearly 150 houses in Missan governorate and 75 in Salahuddine and Diala governorates
have been totally destroyed by the flooding, while more than 900 homes have been
partially damaged countrywide, according to the IRCS. Continuous rains,
which fell for over two weeks in the first half of February, finally stopped last week.

According to al-Abadi, a total of 7,500 families were displaced in different areas of the
country when flooding began on 5 February,
with some 1,500 returning to their homes in northern areas where the fall was less heavy.
“Around 1,000 families are still staying in camps improvised by the IRCS,” she said,
adding that the relief effort had been facilitated by the “good relationship between tribes”
in the north of the country.

The IRCS has received supplies – including medicines, food parcels, blankets and heaters –
from a number of aid organisations, which are expected to last for a month.
Nevertheless, the organisation is also calling on the government to find a speedy solution
for people whose homes were destroyed.
“We call on the Iraqi government to address the problems of the displaced and offer help,”
al-Abadi said.

The Ministry of Displacement and Migration has said that it sent a team to assess
the impact of the disaster.
“As soon as we have complete information on the impact of the flooding countrywide
and the number of destroyed houses, we’ll look for possible ways to help them return
to their homes safely,” said Ali Bassam, a senior ministry official.

Flood victims, though, are looking for more than vague reassurances.
“In every displacement in Iraq, only aid agencies are helping us,” said Salem Adnan,
whose home in Salahuddine was totally destroyed.
“The government isn’t doing anything to help, just offering promises.”

Meanwhile, many of the displaced are falling ill with diarrhoea, dehydration and
gastro-intestinal problems. “Our hospital has become a centre for the homeless,
because children and the elderly are only being treated for simple diseases in the camps,”
said Jaffer Ali, a doctor at the main hospital in Ammarah.
“It‘s become very dangerous for them due to the bad living conditions there.”

[burrowowl]

50. A flash flood can flip over

anything. Tires act as floatation devices and the truck is top-heavy, guess what?
Any desert rat knows about watch for water signs and is cautious.
Saw an asshole in his heavy heavy SUV try to cross and good thing the arroyo was narrow enough downstream so that it got stuck and the fellow had his head above water until the water went down. The SUV was ruined (mud etc.) tee-hee!

[Breeze54]

45. Makes me so scared to death and ...

fucking ANGRY!!!!!!
:grr: :grr: :grr:

and sad......:cry:

[DemonFighterLives]

49. I heard the news and had to find the story here

I find the flash flood flipping the 7 ton truck nearly impossible to believe.
Great War ya got there chimp!
:argh:

[maddezmom]

51. U.S. Says 9 More Soldiers Killed in Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Nine more American troops died in Iraq, the U.S. military reported Monday, five of them in a vehicle accident in a remote, rain-soaked western area. Their deaths brought the number of service members killed so far this month to 13 — nearly half the number who died in all of March.

Three more Americans — two Marines and a sailor — were missing in the Sunday accident in which a truck overturned near Asad air base, a U.S. statement said. All the dead were Marines, the statement added.

It gave no reason for the accident except that it was not a result of hostile fire. Heavy rains fell over the area during the weekend.

Also Sunday, three Marines and a sailor were killed by "hostile fire" in Anbar province, which includes the Asad base, the military said. No further details, including the precise location, were released.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060404/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq;_

[VolcanoJen]

52. Just saw that headline

:cry: :cry: :cry:

[leftchick]

53. CBS Evening News said 13 dead last night

and spent a whopping 11 seconds on the report!

:grr: