During much of the 1991 Gulf War from January 17 to February 28, I was regulated to operate the wrecker. Most every night, we went out and retrieved trucks down due to mechanical problems. Each day we listened to Armed Forces Radio and CNN to find out the latest on the war. At night we could on occasion see flashes from bombing or artillery.
The ground offensive began in late February and my company supported the 1st Infantry Division and delivered over 13 million gallons of fuel for the division. 13 million gallons may seem a lot, but take in mind the M-1 Abrams main battle tanks consumes five gallons of fuel per mile. I was near the border when the ground offensive was unleashed, that afternoon, I was underneath a truck hooking it up to the wrecker and could feel the tremors in the ground from the artillery and bombing. Three days later, the ground offensive ended. When we heard the news of the cease-fire, we had just left our camp area and were heading north, only to turn around and make up the camp again.
Our three truck platoons were in northern Kuwait and I joined them in early March. On the way, we drove around Kuwait City and saw much of the bombed out roads and bridges. North of Kuwait on Highway 80 on the way to Safwan, Iraq, I saw images that would last me a life time. I did drive through and walk around the legendary "Highway of Death". Saw a few deceased Iraqi soldiers but hundreds of not a few thousand vehicles from cars, truck, tanks, APC and Anti-Aircraft guns. The place was a mess that is hard to comprehend unless one actually sees if for him/herself.
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