Lee Kemp

Whenever the MOD announces further deaths in Afghanistan I check the BBC news website to see if it’s anyone I know. It’s not that likely because I didn’t do that kind of job, which means mostly my friends didn’t do that kind of job either. But I look, just in case. So I saw that another three blokes got the good news this week in Helmand bringing the total to 199. Between landmines, ambushes and just taking the fight to the enemy in a most aggressive fashion the casualty rate was always going to be higher than people had perhaps expected, or were used to. Particularly when our own, distant, experience of “war” is driven by the two Iraq conflicts.

A couple of years ago a friend of mine, recently returned from Afghanistan, told me that a British soldier was more likely to be killed or injured over there than an American soldier had been in Vietnam. I’ve no idea if that’s true but the fact that it might be is pause for thought. Particularly as you rarely get to see the wounded. That’s why I found this article at the BBC particularly interesting.

Marine Mark Ormrod stepped on a land mine and lost both legs and one arm. Apparently it didn’t hurt and I always find it interesting when the greviously wounded say it didn’t hurt at the time. But if you consider that landmines contain high explosives. This is material that burns at more than 3,000 m/s as opposed to a low explosive that burns less than 3,000 m/s. If you consider that gunpowder is a low explosive then you have some context as to how fast Mark’s life changed.

Please go and have a look. You get an insight into the guy’s life. He’s 5’6 now because of his prosthetic legs whereas he used to be 6’1. Having gone to a bad taste party in high heels recently I worked out that actually it’s pretty cool to be taller. Mark would probably appreciate that, my experience of marines is that they like to dress in women’s clothing. If they’re not naked at least. So being tall is cool, that means it must be quite shit in reverse. Mark finds it harder on very hot days because we lose a lot of heat through our skin and he simply has less of it. His new legs measure his gait and bluetooth it to a computer to help him improve his walking. The technology is fascinating and the determination of the guy, and many, many others like him is extraordinary.

He now works for the marines and Help for Heroes.

Finally, while I was poking around the MOD website I found this fascinating story about army divers working in Afghanistan.