As soldiers we are trained to always be vigilant about the safety of ourselves and our battle buddies. We ensure our own safety by wearing the personal protective equipment, having adequate training for the task and discussing different ways to be safe. Needless to say there are many ways to prevent accidents. A commander may consider giving his troops a well needed break from a strenuous work day. He may do this by organizing a cookout and emphasize how important safety is to every soldier. The local culture prevents accidents with many of the same methods that soldiers use. This time the method of accident prevention had a very regional twist to it.
Construction of villas in a camp is being conducted by a local Iraqi construction company and overseen by the Department of Public Works. Workers there have experienced two accidents in recent day. The accidents were minor lacerations, resulting in emergency room visits to receive sutures. The Iraqi supervisor realized the answer to the safety problem, he and his crew was experiencing. They had not yet scarified an animal onsite for the blessings of Allah. He quickly remedied the situation and supplied two goats for his crew to sacrifice one for each employee hurt. Engineer Furat a local working in DPW says “They sacrifice the goats for good luck. The person making the sacrifice must say; In the name of God while killing the animal to bless the sacrifice” Furat and servicemembers from the Joint Area Support Group witnessed the sacrifice.
On June 15, 2008 the onsite plumber who is also a butcher; took control of the sacrifice. The construction crew led the goats into the villa. The butcher laid the first goat on his side. Put his foot on the back of the goat’s neck and slit his throat with a six inch blade. Meanwhile the second goat stood nearby and watched the scene. Seeing the fate of his friend the second goat put up some minor resistance to his own death. Within a few minutes of the initial slicing of the major arteries and airway in the neck, both goats stopped trying to get up. Most of the blood that pooled around the area of sacrifice was washed away with water. However, some of the goat’s blood was stamped with hand prints on the walls of the construction site in hopes it would help ensure a safe work environment. The goats then were cooked in traditional Iraqi dishes for all to enjoy.
When all the sacrificing and preparing was finished the construction crew and their guests took part in a feast. They took time out of there busy construction schedule to bless the site with a sacrifice ensuring the safety of all employees. CW2 Douglas Izer present at the sacrifice says “We were invited to attend, back home my family butchers’ animals every fall so this didn’t bother me. It was a neat experience, I’m glad they invited us.” It appears the blessing has served its purpose; the work site has been accident free ever since.
