Soldiers on Extended Tours Steel Themselves for Few More Months

NAJAF, Iraq —  Spc. Jesse Riley figured he’d be in Las Vegas right about now, lounging by a pool, downing cold beers and hitting the poker tables.

Instead, the 23-year-old New Jersey native was crouched in front of a Humvee with eight other soldiers in the middle of the Iraqi desert, playing spades, sipping warm soda and trying -- without much success -- to prevent the cards from blowing away in the hot breeze.

Last week, Riley and about 21,000 other U.S. soldiers had one foot out of the country. They’d completed a year of service in Iraq and were days away from flying home.

Then they got word that their tours would be extended at least three months.

“How does it feel?” Riley asked. “You know when you’re really cold and your fingers start to freeze and sting? But then after a while you lose the feeling and it’s not so bad. That’s what this is like. Comfortably numb. Comfortably numb.”

Commanders decided to keep extra forces in Iraq to help quell uprisings by insurgents in the city of Fallouja, subdue militiamen loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada Sadr, and deal with other violence.

The extension affected about 14,000 soldiers from the 1st Armored Division, based in Germany; about 2,800 with the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, based at Ft. Polk, La.; and a number of smaller units.

Soldiers were reacting with a combination of disappointment, resignation and a sense of duty.

“I told my wife that what really mattered is the mission we’re doing here,” said Sgt. Matthew Wetzel, 23, of North Carolina.

Some expected the switch, but thousands of others had to scramble to alter plans.

At a new base near Najaf, where Riley and other troops had been sent to keep Sadr’s forces in check, soldiers rattled off a litany of canceled vacations. Mexico. Skiing in the Swiss Alps. California. Several had arranged to treat their wives to a limo ride and a formal night on the town.

“Disneyland was definitely in the works,” said Sgt. Shaun Harris, 25.

There were a lot of tearful phone calls to anxious family members.

“The families weren’t happy. No one’s happy,” said Maj. Tom Isom, 39, of Miami, a member of the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment.

Isom said he didn’t have to cancel any plans because he didn’t make any. “I know better,” he said. “I’ve been in the Army too long.”

Lt. David Humphreys, 26, of Plano, Texas, was kicking himself for giving away much of his stuff. From Top Ramen noodles to portable DVD players, departing soldiers had been shedding belongings to lighten the load for the expected flight home.

“The worst part is that we are going to have to live through another summer here,” said Humphreys, part of the 1st Battalion, 37th Armored Regiment.

Already, temperatures in the Najaf area have been in the high 90s. By July they should reach 120 degrees.

Many of the U.S. soldiers now at the base near Najaf came from Baghdad, where they had been in the so-called Green Zone. As the headquarters for the U.S.-led occupation administration, it’s one of the most comfortable military environments in Iraq. Soldiers from the 2nd Armored Cavalry had been assigned to guard occupation officials.

Now, the soldiers were building a new camp from virtually nothing. Toilets and tents were scarce, in part because violence on the highways had delayed supply convoys. There were no showers or laundry facilities. Hundreds of soldiers were still sleeping in their vehicles. “It’s nothing but a sea of sand here,” Riley said.

Others were taking the extension in stride.

“We’re professionals,” said Sgt. Christopher Shriver, 29, of Ohio. “We go from sitting around playing poker to doing the mission we have to do. It’s a switch you have to be able to turn.”

Sgt. Luis Barrondo, 39, of Puerto Rico, survived a rocket-propelled-grenade assault on his jeep two weeks ago because the attackers forgot to remove the safety pins from the grenades.

He was still celebrating the fact that he’d survived what he thought was his last fight in Iraq when he learned his tour had been extended.

“But I don’t mind,” Barrondo said.

“I feel like I’m doing something in Iraq. We’re fighting a real war. We’re here to finish the job.”