Two Hurlburt Field, Fla. airmen from the 1st Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron’s explosive ordnance disposal flight received Bronze Stars last week for their work as team leaders while deployed to Iraq earlier this year. TSgt. Angela Shepherd reports that MSgt. Harold Seiple’s team recovered and destroyed more than 20,000 pounds of enemy ordnance and bulk explosives. SSgt. Jeremy Gibson led a team that dealt with improved explosive devices, completing 138 post-blast analyses and played a crucial role in capturing an enemy weapons cache containing 1, 324 ordnance items.
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
