Photo By 1st Lt. William Marquez | At a pool in Baghdad, Iraq, Iraqi scuba divers from Iraq's River Patrol conduct a...... read more read more
BAGHDAD, Iraq — At a swimming pool that was once part of an exclusive club for Saddam Hussein's officers, but later became a wartime oasis for U.S. servicemembers, Soldiers from the 49th Military Police Brigade, Maj. Dillon Haynes and Sgt. 1st Class Arne Eastlund from Sacramento, Calif., supervise Iraqi River Patrolmen as they practice scuba diving.
A pool that was once teeming with Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines sunbathing, diving, splashing and swimming beneath a piercing Baghdad sun is now quietly tucked away within the International Zone. The pool, once known as the "Freedom Rest Pool," is no longer used by servicemembers to rest and relax from the stresses of combat.
Iraqis now manage and care for the pool, but the pool is rarely used. The Iraqi scuba divers are rare visitors whose use of the pool pleases Sgt. 1st Class Sandra McIntosh who advises and assists the Iraqi pool managers. "It is good that the pool is getting used. They are getting training that they may not otherwise receive," said McIntosh.
When Haynes and Eastlund, during their meetings with officials from the Iraqi river patrol, discovered that the divers of the river patrol no longer had a place where they could receive training from highly trained and experienced American divers employed by the Civilian Police Assistance Training Team, the two Soldiers from the 49th began calling, emailing and visiting Iraqis and Americans who they thought could help. Eastlund, remembering that he heard about a pool in the international zone during his deployment in 2005 and 2006, located the pool and asked McIntosh and the Iraqi pool managers if the river patrol divers could use their pool as a training site. "I heard about the pool when I was here three years ago. I tracked it down and spoke to the American sergeant working there. Iraqis working at the pool and sergeant McIntosh had no problem with our training plan. In fact, they were happy to help," said Eastlund.
The Iraqi divers training at the pool are not new to diving. They are current members of the river patrol, but they are participating in the training to sharpen their skills and prepare themselves to instruct new river patrol divers on basic scuba diving techniques. "This is a train the trainer program. The Iraqi divers trained here will have the capacity to demonstrate what they learned to new divers joining river patrol units," said Haynes.
The Iraqi divers training at the "Freedom Rest Pool" are lead divers in Iraq's River Patrol. These men help lead and develop the many Iraqi divers patrolling the banks and depths of the Tigris and Euphrates to ensure that their fellow Iraqis remain safe as they enjoy and use these great waterways. They primarily recover bodies and sensitive equipment. "They are good at body recovery. When they find a missing person, it puts the family of the deceased at ease. Not long ago, River Patrol divers recovered a deceased family member of Iraq's Prime Minister, and they recovered sensitive items belonging to an American security firm that had a vehicle roll over into the river," said Tim Zuercher of Cleveland, who is the lead instructor training the Iraqi divers.
Zuercher, along with his colleague, Mark Cushman of Oregon, are employees of CPATT, and worked closely with Haynes and Eastlund to set up the training at the "Freedom Rest Pool." In the pool, Zuercher and Cushman take their time with the Iraqi divers, speaking clearly and slowly so the Arabic translator can make sure the Iraqi divers understand their instructions. The American instructors are patient with the Iraqi divers, and the Iraqis are very attentive. The Americans teach a lesson to the group as a whole, but test them one at a time to ensure that each of the Iraqi divers understand the lesson without confusion. "They are learning new techniques that will bring them closer to international scuba diving standards. Our goal is to make sure that they have the ability to demonstrate, to their fellow River Patrol divers, the skills we are teaching them here," said Cushman.
In what was known as the "Freedom Rest Pool," Iraqis and Americans dive together to ensure that Iraqi progress in securing their ancient rivers, which continue to nourish a civilization thousands of years old, does not halt when Americans return home. These Iraqi divers will train a second generation of Iraqi divers, and the second will build upon what they learned from the first and train a third generation of Iraqi divers, and so on, long after Americans leave. "As Americans, our challenge is to understand that everything cannot be accomplished overnight. We thought we could when we first arrived. Now, we are smarter. I'm just glad that I can help build good working relationships that will help this process along," said Eastlund.
| Date Taken: | 11.06.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 11.06.2009 01:10 |
| Story ID: | 41161 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 725 |
| Downloads: | 558 |
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