Wounded Rangers

By Dominic Hagans

On September 11, 2008, Warrant Officer Dominic Hagans of the 1st Battalion the Royal Irish Regiment became the latest casualty of the Afghan war when an improvised enemy bomb exploded under his vehicle, wrecking his legs and changing his life forever. As he embarked on the long road to rehabilitation and partial recovery, WO2 Hagans decided to record his experiences and those some of his comrades in print. Wounded Rangers is a compilation of no-punches-pulled true stories from the front line, plus the heart-rending story of a mother whose son was critically injured on the battlefield. Harrowing and often shocking as these accounts are, the professional soldier’s determination to do his duty and his indomitable sense of humour shine through. All the proceeds from this book will go to the welfare fund of the 1st Battalion the Royal Irish Regiment, to help meet the cost of caring for their wounded and helping them to adapt and adjust to their injuries.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mereo Books
• Release date: Mar 11, 2014
• ISBN: 9781909544598

Book preview

WOUNDED RANGERS

Under enemy fire in Afghanistan

Dominic Hagans

Warrant Officer, 1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment

Smashwords Edition

All Rights Reserved. Copyright © 2013 Dominic Hagans

Published by Mereo

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The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

ISBN: 978-1-909544-59-8

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends

(John 15:13)

Introduction

I was born on a small estate called Castle Vale in Birmingham, which is why I am generally known to my mates as Brummie. I joined the army in June 1990 and went on to take part in several operations around the world.

In June 2008 I was serving in Afghanistan as a Warrant Officer in the 1st Battalion the Royal Irish Regiment. My battalion was part of Operation Herrick 8 (Operation Herrick is the codename under which all British operations in the war in Afghanistan are conducted – Herrick 8 took place from April-October 2008).

More than 400 British personnel have so far been killed in the Afghan conflict and thousands injured, along with many more from other nations. On September 11 2008, I became one of the injured when an improvised bomb (IED) exploded under my vehicle, wrecking my legs and putting an end to my active service.

Not many people understand the devastating nature of the injuries sustained in the Afghan conflict as a result of IEDS and high-velocity bullets. I hope this book will give an insight into what soldiers are going through daily and how it affects so many people at home.

This book is a compilation of true stories from me and my comrades from the front line. All the proceeds will go to the welfare fund of the 1st’Battalion the Royal Irish Regiment, who look after our wounded and need money to help them adapt and adjust to their injuries.

These stories cover the lives of several wounded soldiers, including myself, and the effects of our injuries, as well as other perspectives on the war, including that of a mother whose son was critically injured. The events that led to the injury are described, followed by the story of the soldier who led the casualty evacuation (casevac). Some of these soldiers have made it back to work, but most, including myself, are still battling to get back to some kind of normality.

THE DISTRICTS OF HELMAND PROVINCE

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank all the staff at Selly Oak Hospital, Queen Elizabeth’s Hospital in Birmingham and Kings College Hospital in London. I also would like to thank all the welfare staff at the 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment for all their time and dedication throughout my recovery, especially to Capt Nigel Bradley QGM for looking after my family during my incident, and to Capt John Millar for looking after my recovery.

Without the extremely professional attitude of staff at Headley Court, the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre near Epsom, many more soldiers would be lost. Thank you all at Headley Court for helping with so many wounded men and women.

I would sincerely like to thank my wife Stacy, my children Sian and Quinn, my mother and father, Doris and Dominic, and my brothers and sister. I know I have put you all through hell over the last three years.

I would like to say ‘thank you’ to C/Sgt Gilchrist for his part in Op Herrick 4, and Capt Whitmarsh for his part in Op Herrick 13.

Finally, I want to thank Mrs Josie McKinney for her story about her son Alistair. I know it was hard for her because it brought back so many bad memories.

Chapter 1

MY PERSONAL 9/11

DOMINIC HAGANS

My battalion, 1 Royal Irish, was deployed as the OMLT (Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team) responsible for training the Afghan National Army (ANA). Whilst operating in Marjah during July 2008 OMLT 4 had survived several contacts with the Taliban and I had been shot in the boot, lost my vehicle door to an RPG attack (see chapter 6) and encountered several ambushes. After getting away with it so many times I thought the luck of the Irish was with us, though we had lost an outstanding soldier in battle in Marjah. I thought to myself that we couldn’t get any more thrown at us - we had had it all. But I was wrong.

In August we headed south to the notorious Garmsir area. We were to take over from our American friends there, and the handover went very well. We patrolled daily with the Yanks until we were happy with the Tactical Area of Responsibility. After we had taken control and the Yanks had left, my OC (Officer Commanding), Major Rob Armstrong, and I had decided that our men did not have enough overhead protection and needed engineer support.

On the September 11 2008 (yes, 9/11) I took a two- vehicle patrol to visit my men and to enable a captain from the engineers to carry out his recce. We had been to Stella and Alma and all was well. At about 1215 hrs we headed south towards Patrol Base 1. We were about 1.5 kilometres south of Alma when suddenly, from nowhere, I was engulfed in one hell of an explosion.

I felt an initial surge of pain in my legs then, just the way they make it look in the war movies, time stood still. I felt I was moving very slowly and floating in the air. It seemed as if I was there for ages. Finally I was lying on the ground.

I sat up and looked to my right. I could see the radio, which had landed by me. I picked it up and found it was still working. I sent an initial contact report, receiving no answer, although I later found out that they had heard me.

I looked down, and what happened next seemed to take place in slow motion. I could see that my left leg was hanging off below the knee. My right leg was shattered. I couldn’t even administer morphine, because my body armour and helmet had been blown off by the blast and the morphine was in my armour. It was mad, because I should have been in terrible pain, but somehow I wasn’t.

I looked up to see Cpl Alan Boyle and Sig Lee Townsend moving towards us. I shouted at them to bring the metal detectors. As they were coming over, I needed to know my crew was OK, so I shouted at Capt Ben Power. He shouted back, and I was very relieved to hear his voice.

Then I shouted for Cpl Cecil Carter. There was no response. Please God no, I was thinking, but then I heard his voice too. I was overwhelmed with relief to know he was alive.

Cpl Boyle arrived with the men and they put me on a stretcher. It was a funny feeling being put on the stretcher separately from my left leg, which was only just attached. The team then took us back to Alma, where they gave us first aid. Blood was flowing out of my leg and I felt my heart racing. I was struggling for air, and must have been in shock. I felt my eyes starting to close