Soldiers recall heroism, horror of Canada's bloodiest day in Afghanistan

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By Terry Pedwell

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (CP) - The day started as expected, with the soldiers of Charlie Company of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry setting out in the early morning darkness on orders to root out Taliban fighters.

It was Thursday, Aug. 3, 2006.

What they would not discover until many hours later was that they had witnessed what would become known as Canada's bloodiest day of combat so far in Afghanistan.

"We got our orders early in the evening for the mission," recalled Sgt. Patrick Tower, a blond, bespectacled 34-year-old whose body language displays a sense of authority.

"The mission was to move into a school in Pashmul, which is in Panjwaii District," he said.

The troops drove out in their heavy green machines under cover of darkness, heading west, and almost instantly got into a fight.

"As we were coming up to the objective . . . we saw an enemy position lined up in front of us," Tower recalled.

Master Cpl. Tony Perry was the 2nd Platoon crew commander of the Light Armoured Vehicle, or LAVIII, at the front of the assault.

He radioed his commanding officer, asking if there were Afghan National Police patrolling the area, to make sure he wasn't about to hit friends.

"No, there's not," was the response heard back on his headset, clearing the way for Perry to light up the guns, the loud rat-tat-tat of machine gunfire cutting through the night air.

Within only a few minutes, the initial engagement over and the enemy destroyed, Two Platoon moved forward.

They were far from being out of danger, however, as the third vehicle in the convoy, another LAV, was struck by two roadside bombs.

It would be their first casualty of the day. Despite valiant efforts to save him, Cpl. Christopher Reid would later succumb to his injuries from the bigger of the two blasts. The vehicle's platoon commander was also hurt, but survived.

Once the casualties were in the hands of medics, the troops moved on to what would become a 12-hour battle marked by blood, heat exhaustion and a storm of grenades and bullets.

Even under heavy fire, the Canadians were able to overtake a school that was at the heart of their mission.

"On the initial assault, I was on the first wave," explained Cpl. Jason Hoekstra, describing how Afghan police officers who were part of the mission were being overwhelmed.

"We took a lot of fire, but they're just police officers," he said. "So we took the initiative and we took the school."

But the Taliban - between 150 and 200 of them - weren't about to give up without a fight.

Forming a horseshoe and nearly surrounding the building, they attacked with a vengeance.

"At that time, we started taking fire from multiple spots," Hoekstra recalled.

The Canadians fought back hard.

"We just, we hammered them," said Hoekstra.

"If we had four deaths, I can guarantee you we had four times that. We gave it to them."

Military officials refused to say how many Taliban fighters were killed. Sources say, however, that dozens of bodies littered an area around the schoolyard.

As bullets flew and rocket-propelled grenades smashed the building, at one point coming every few seconds, it's unclear when the Canadians realized that they were literally in the middle of a killing field. The Taliban had strategically planted landmines throughout the compound.

With nine soldiers down, three of them dead, they knew they had to get out.

"Are you sure you guys want to do this?" the LAV platoon commander asked his fellow soldiers as they desperately pleaded to move in to save their brothers in arms.

No one who was there will reveal the identity of those who risked their lives by literally driving through a daisy chain of mines to reach their comrades. The actions of one should never overshadow the actions of many, they insist.

"Every one of the soldiers that were there can be proud of the way that they acted, with heroism and bravery and courage," said Tower.

"I don't want to take away from any one of them by trying to identify a specific soldier who outshone the rest," he explained.

"They're all heroes to us, and that's how they'd want to be thought of."

Canadians also need to understand, Tower stressed, that those who lost their lives that day were not unwilling participants. Everyone knew the risks of the six-month tour of duty.

"The soldiers that died weren't victims," he said. "They were fighting. And they were fighting for each other."

"People at home should be proud of the quality of soldier that's over here."

On Saturday, many of the 10 Canadians injured in the operation shed tears on the tarmac of Kandahar Air Field as they watched four flag-draped coffins being loaded onto a C-130 Hercules aircraft bound for home.

More than 3,000 soldiers from Canada and other NATO countries serving in Afghanistan stood shoulder to shoulder in impressive formation, silently saying their goodbyes.

The bodies of Reid, Pte. Kevin Dallaire, Sgt. Vaughn Ingram and Cpl. Bryce Jeffrey Keller returned home. Those who remain behind for at least a few more days or weeks in southern Afghanistan vowed to carry on.

"We've got to keep going to honour them," said Hoekstra.

"Because if we stay (at our base), what good it is then?"

As if someone, or something, was telling them 'your time here isn't over yet,' the week ended with yet another tragedy: the death of another soldier in what appeared to be a simple traffic accident.

Master Cpl. Raymond Arndt of the Loyal Edmonton Regiment, died Saturday, just hours after the four killed on Thursday had left Afghanistan, when a large truck collided head-on with a Canadian G-Wagon, about 35 kilometres southeast of Kandahar. Arndt, 32, of Peers, Alta., was married.

The Canadians would have to endure yet another ramp ceremony to again mark an unexpectedly early journey home for one of their own.

Three other soldiers were injured in the accident, two of them being flown to a hospital in Germany for further treatment.

One of the injured, Cpl. Jared Gagnon, a reservist with the Loyal Edmonton, was listed in very serious condition.