1 00:00:00,740 --> 00:00:03,210 greetings . I'm major john t Storm 2 00:00:03,210 --> 00:00:05,210 chief of Public affairs for the 908 3 00:00:05,210 --> 00:00:07,460 Airlift wing after the collapse of the 4 00:00:07,460 --> 00:00:09,680 Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and the 5 00:00:09,680 --> 00:00:11,880 fall of Kabul on august 15th , the 6 00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:13,910 Hamad Karzai International Airport 7 00:00:13,910 --> 00:00:15,577 remained the only non Taliban 8 00:00:15,577 --> 00:00:17,688 controlled route out of the country . 9 00:00:17,688 --> 00:00:19,520 Between 15 and 30 august the US 10 00:00:19,520 --> 00:00:21,740 evacuated more than 82,000 people , 11 00:00:21,740 --> 00:00:24,050 including US citizens , special 12 00:00:24,050 --> 00:00:26,050 immigrant visa applicants and other 13 00:00:26,050 --> 00:00:28,590 vulnerable afghans . In total , more 14 00:00:28,590 --> 00:00:31,170 than 122,000 people were airlifted 15 00:00:31,170 --> 00:00:33,980 abroad . These evacuation operations 16 00:00:33,980 --> 00:00:36,400 comprise the largest in history . I am 17 00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:38,610 here today with three members of the 18 00:00:38,610 --> 00:00:40,850 908 aeromedical staging squadron . 19 00:00:41,240 --> 00:00:44,680 Major Jeffrey Riley , Captain Caitlin , 20 00:00:44,690 --> 00:00:47,350 Camacho , master Sergeant Quincy Miller . 21 00:00:48,340 --> 00:00:50,660 All three were in Kabul during the 22 00:00:50,660 --> 00:00:53,010 evacuation operations . This is their 23 00:00:53,010 --> 00:00:55,530 story . Thank you all for being here 24 00:00:55,530 --> 00:00:57,710 today . Thank you . Let's start by 25 00:00:57,710 --> 00:00:59,821 talking about when you first got into 26 00:00:59,821 --> 00:01:01,932 country into Afghanistan where you're 27 00:01:01,932 --> 00:01:04,280 at and what your duty tile was . What a 28 00:01:04,280 --> 00:01:06,391 typical day was like , okay , I guess 29 00:01:06,391 --> 00:01:08,336 I'll start . So we got into in the 30 00:01:08,336 --> 00:01:11,470 country into bagram around May 1st . 31 00:01:11,660 --> 00:01:13,890 And so we were there at bagram , 32 00:01:13,900 --> 00:01:16,067 working both on the , on the floor and 33 00:01:16,067 --> 00:01:18,289 also doing our herbs mission , which is 34 00:01:18,289 --> 00:01:20,610 a patient staging mission . Were you 35 00:01:20,610 --> 00:01:24,530 seeing a lot of activity before uh the 36 00:01:24,530 --> 00:01:27,780 fall of Kabul pretty busy I would say 37 00:01:27,790 --> 00:01:30,012 on a given day . We were doing at least 38 00:01:30,012 --> 00:01:32,179 one or two missions a day coming in on 39 00:01:32,179 --> 00:01:34,401 the nine lines were coming in . We will 40 00:01:34,401 --> 00:01:36,457 get him off the Blackhawks and bring 41 00:01:36,457 --> 00:01:38,679 them into the hospital . What was going 42 00:01:38,679 --> 00:01:40,901 through your head on August 15 when you 43 00:01:40,901 --> 00:01:42,846 found out that Kabul had fallen to 44 00:01:42,846 --> 00:01:45,012 Taliban control . I think that day was 45 00:01:45,012 --> 00:01:47,179 the day that we actually got sent into 46 00:01:47,179 --> 00:01:49,730 the bunker area and we were made to 47 00:01:49,730 --> 00:01:50,730 stand guard . 48 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:56,951 Yeah , I'll kind of help out . Like I 49 00:01:56,951 --> 00:01:59,118 said , That's , you know , so the 15th 50 00:01:59,118 --> 00:02:01,870 forward is really when you're in full 51 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:04,630 body armor , full helmets , carrying 52 00:02:04,630 --> 00:02:06,741 weapons because we had weapons at all 53 00:02:06,741 --> 00:02:08,720 times . Um , you knew things were 54 00:02:08,720 --> 00:02:10,998 getting really serious . Um , you know , 55 00:02:10,998 --> 00:02:12,998 meetings went from , hey , we think 56 00:02:12,998 --> 00:02:15,331 things are gonna kind of happen to okay , 57 00:02:15,331 --> 00:02:17,664 it's really here and it's happened . Um , 58 00:02:17,664 --> 00:02:19,887 I couldn't go back to the dormitories . 59 00:02:19,887 --> 00:02:22,053 We had spent a lot of time then in the 60 00:02:22,053 --> 00:02:21,950 hospital actually sleeping there and 61 00:02:21,950 --> 00:02:25,180 eating there as well . Now , I'm not 62 00:02:25,180 --> 00:02:26,958 going to ask you if if you were 63 00:02:26,958 --> 00:02:30,090 frightened because I know you all were , 64 00:02:30,940 --> 00:02:32,940 what did you do to manage your fear 65 00:02:32,940 --> 00:02:34,940 during that time ? How did you keep 66 00:02:34,940 --> 00:02:37,320 yourself calm ? Just the task at hand . 67 00:02:37,330 --> 00:02:39,386 You know , you just knew you have to 68 00:02:39,386 --> 00:02:41,552 keep your composure because you know , 69 00:02:41,552 --> 00:02:43,608 you know that if you don't keep your 70 00:02:43,608 --> 00:02:45,830 composure , everybody else is not gonna 71 00:02:45,830 --> 00:02:47,941 have composure . So you just think of 72 00:02:47,941 --> 00:02:50,163 the task at hand , you know , carry out 73 00:02:50,163 --> 00:02:49,900 the mission and then , you know , 74 00:02:50,200 --> 00:02:52,533 worried about the rest later and you're , 75 00:02:52,533 --> 00:02:54,256 you're at the airport and just 76 00:02:54,256 --> 00:02:56,533 described the scene around the airport , 77 00:02:56,533 --> 00:02:58,700 I don't like , what did it look like ? 78 00:02:58,700 --> 00:03:00,900 I was in the top and when the guards , 79 00:03:00,900 --> 00:03:03,050 all the guards left , you know the 80 00:03:03,840 --> 00:03:06,900 afghan guards , they left and they push 81 00:03:06,900 --> 00:03:09,390 through the civilian airport and then 82 00:03:09,390 --> 00:03:11,279 I'm sitting there watching on the 83 00:03:11,279 --> 00:03:13,334 screen and it was me and my sergeant 84 00:03:13,334 --> 00:03:15,460 kelly phillips . We were just like , 85 00:03:16,340 --> 00:03:18,390 what do we do ? So remember we 86 00:03:18,390 --> 00:03:20,580 automatically ran out of the top when 87 00:03:20,580 --> 00:03:22,747 got the gun , the commander were being 88 00:03:22,747 --> 00:03:25,390 on his door were like , hey sizable 89 00:03:25,390 --> 00:03:28,780 forces coming in at us . We have to do 90 00:03:28,780 --> 00:03:30,836 something like get everybody . So we 91 00:03:30,836 --> 00:03:33,310 bunkered ourselves into the , into the 92 00:03:33,310 --> 00:03:35,590 hospital at that point and you know , 93 00:03:35,590 --> 00:03:37,646 stood guard at the doors and we were 94 00:03:37,646 --> 00:03:40,460 just waiting to see what was next . I 95 00:03:40,460 --> 00:03:42,293 would imagine that would make it 96 00:03:42,293 --> 00:03:44,404 extremely difficult to do your jobs . 97 00:03:44,540 --> 00:03:47,570 That was the hardest day when you're 98 00:03:47,570 --> 00:03:49,737 told to wreck your weapon as a nurse . 99 00:03:49,737 --> 00:03:53,700 That's the hardest thing . How many I 100 00:03:53,710 --> 00:03:56,043 imagine it was , it was packed in there . 101 00:03:56,043 --> 00:03:58,321 It would get as many people as you can . 102 00:03:58,321 --> 00:04:00,760 What was that like ? That was the worst 103 00:04:01,230 --> 00:04:02,660 or wow , 104 00:04:05,340 --> 00:04:07,507 It was just , we were all cluttered in 105 00:04:07,507 --> 00:04:10,000 one room and which didn't , you know , 106 00:04:10,010 --> 00:04:12,066 we don't have no eyes on the outside 107 00:04:12,066 --> 00:04:14,066 anymore because because we were all 108 00:04:14,066 --> 00:04:16,288 just , you know huddled in , you know , 109 00:04:16,288 --> 00:04:18,454 we had guards on the doors and we just 110 00:04:18,454 --> 00:04:20,732 didn't know what was gonna happen next . 111 00:04:20,732 --> 00:04:22,899 You know , we didn't know what the mob 112 00:04:22,899 --> 00:04:22,460 was going to do because they were , you 113 00:04:22,460 --> 00:04:24,460 know , they rushed the airport , we 114 00:04:24,460 --> 00:04:26,682 didn't know if they were gonna continue 115 00:04:26,682 --> 00:04:28,738 on , we're only like 2030 yards from 116 00:04:28,738 --> 00:04:30,960 where everything was going down because 117 00:04:30,960 --> 00:04:32,960 the the hospital was , it was right 118 00:04:32,960 --> 00:04:35,293 there at the gate , the Flightline gate . 119 00:04:35,293 --> 00:04:34,810 So we didn't know if they were going to 120 00:04:34,810 --> 00:04:38,180 come through . It was just So I would 121 00:04:38,180 --> 00:04:39,958 imagine that that would make it 122 00:04:39,958 --> 00:04:42,180 extremely difficult to not only eat and 123 00:04:42,180 --> 00:04:44,500 sleep but do other things . I mean you 124 00:04:44,500 --> 00:04:46,667 guys up like 20 hours a day , 24 hours 125 00:04:46,667 --> 00:04:48,778 a day . What was the longest you were 126 00:04:48,778 --> 00:04:51,550 up ? How did you keep going at that 127 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:53,560 point ? You don't have a choice . I 128 00:04:53,560 --> 00:04:55,893 mean you have to do what you have to do . 129 00:04:55,893 --> 00:04:57,782 Um you still have to take care of 130 00:04:57,782 --> 00:04:59,838 people , but we have to take care of 131 00:04:59,838 --> 00:05:02,171 each other . What we had was each other . 132 00:05:02,171 --> 00:05:04,171 We didn't have any , we had no idea 133 00:05:04,171 --> 00:05:06,171 what's going on outside outside the 134 00:05:06,171 --> 00:05:08,670 hospital itself . So you don't have any 135 00:05:08,670 --> 00:05:10,559 other choice just to kind of keep 136 00:05:10,559 --> 00:05:13,720 pushing . Did you ever at any point 137 00:05:13,720 --> 00:05:15,887 feel like I'm not gonna make it out of 138 00:05:15,887 --> 00:05:19,060 here . Yes , wow . 139 00:05:19,840 --> 00:05:23,110 Has that experience changed you at all ? 140 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:25,750 And if so , how what's different now ? 141 00:05:26,940 --> 00:05:28,829 I would definitely say I get more 142 00:05:28,829 --> 00:05:32,120 agitated sitting in my civilian job now 143 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:34,231 listening to everybody complain about 144 00:05:34,231 --> 00:05:37,660 little stuff . So I think 145 00:05:38,140 --> 00:05:40,600 taking things for granted as I don't do 146 00:05:40,600 --> 00:05:44,270 that anymore . Um I've stopped 147 00:05:44,280 --> 00:05:46,169 picking up extra shifts and stuff 148 00:05:46,169 --> 00:05:48,336 because I want to spend that time with 149 00:05:48,336 --> 00:05:50,447 my family . Like that time could have 150 00:05:50,447 --> 00:05:52,391 been cut short . And so being over 151 00:05:52,391 --> 00:05:54,510 there , you really realize that what 152 00:05:54,520 --> 00:05:56,687 accomplishment and you can go each and 153 00:05:56,687 --> 00:05:58,409 every one of you , it might be 154 00:05:58,409 --> 00:06:00,631 different . But what accomplishment are 155 00:06:00,631 --> 00:06:02,880 you most proud of ? I'm as being kind 156 00:06:02,880 --> 00:06:05,060 of the leader of the group . I'm just 157 00:06:05,060 --> 00:06:08,340 happy everybody got home . Being a part 158 00:06:08,340 --> 00:06:11,270 of history was good . And when we first 159 00:06:11,270 --> 00:06:13,548 got there , all the girls that were in , 160 00:06:13,548 --> 00:06:15,690 they were just like stunned when I 161 00:06:15,690 --> 00:06:17,857 walked out . But then as they came off 162 00:06:17,857 --> 00:06:20,079 the airplane when we dropped them off , 163 00:06:20,079 --> 00:06:23,410 every one of them gave me a hug . Let's 164 00:06:23,410 --> 00:06:25,466 let's talk about that a little bit . 165 00:06:25,466 --> 00:06:27,632 The the girls , what age we're talking 166 00:06:27,632 --> 00:06:29,966 about ? Just all females or young girls , 167 00:06:29,966 --> 00:06:32,100 we had males and females with a group 168 00:06:32,100 --> 00:06:35,920 page from like 9-15 . Why do you think 169 00:06:35,920 --> 00:06:38,087 that the young girls were surprised to 170 00:06:38,087 --> 00:06:40,031 see you ? I'm an independent woman 171 00:06:40,031 --> 00:06:43,300 doing a job that they can't do over 172 00:06:43,300 --> 00:06:45,467 there . He made friends with them real 173 00:06:45,467 --> 00:06:47,467 quick . They're real standoffish at 174 00:06:47,467 --> 00:06:49,689 first . Like they didn't really talk to 175 00:06:49,689 --> 00:06:51,911 me . I didn't have , there was one that 176 00:06:51,911 --> 00:06:54,244 was a little sick so I took care of her , 177 00:06:54,244 --> 00:06:56,530 like made sure she was okay . But um it 178 00:06:56,530 --> 00:06:58,752 was when they got off and they saw that 179 00:06:58,752 --> 00:07:01,630 they were okay . Like the first thing 180 00:07:01,630 --> 00:07:03,686 they did when they came off the ramp 181 00:07:03,686 --> 00:07:05,686 was hugged me . How'd that make you 182 00:07:05,686 --> 00:07:09,150 feel ? Did it make it worth it ? What 183 00:07:09,150 --> 00:07:11,261 about you ? Greatest compliment ? The 184 00:07:11,261 --> 00:07:13,483 same , same thing . Just everybody made 185 00:07:13,483 --> 00:07:15,483 it home being a part of history and 186 00:07:15,483 --> 00:07:17,150 just you know , just a deeper 187 00:07:17,150 --> 00:07:19,261 appreciation for life . It was just , 188 00:07:19,261 --> 00:07:19,190 it was one of the greatest experiences 189 00:07:19,190 --> 00:07:21,780 of my life for sure . And definitely 190 00:07:21,780 --> 00:07:24,810 the scariest if evacuation operations 191 00:07:24,810 --> 00:07:27,650 had continued , would you have stayed ? 192 00:07:28,540 --> 00:07:32,420 Yeah , absolutely . I mean 193 00:07:32,420 --> 00:07:34,587 this is you know , we're all medical , 194 00:07:34,587 --> 00:07:36,698 you know , we do an oath , you know , 195 00:07:36,698 --> 00:07:38,698 oath of office , you know , for our 196 00:07:38,698 --> 00:07:40,809 medical , you know , to help people . 197 00:07:40,809 --> 00:07:42,753 We're not gonna leave . You know , 198 00:07:42,753 --> 00:07:44,920 we're gonna get the job done until the 199 00:07:44,920 --> 00:07:46,976 last person which which we did . You 200 00:07:46,976 --> 00:07:49,087 know , we left on August 30 . We were 201 00:07:49,087 --> 00:07:51,253 the fifth and last plane out . We were 202 00:07:51,253 --> 00:07:52,976 the last medical crew to leave 203 00:07:52,976 --> 00:07:55,310 Afghanistan , one of them . So this is , 204 00:07:55,320 --> 00:07:57,487 that's what we do . We're not going to 205 00:07:57,487 --> 00:07:59,598 shy away from it . So they would have 206 00:07:59,598 --> 00:08:02,090 said , Hey , stay till September 11 or 207 00:08:02,090 --> 00:08:04,312 further on . We would have been there . 208 00:08:04,440 --> 00:08:06,570 What military training do you feel 209 00:08:06,570 --> 00:08:08,840 benefited you the most we did get to go 210 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:11,260 to Apes training and I think that that 211 00:08:11,260 --> 00:08:13,990 prepared a little bit . It's a training 212 00:08:13,990 --> 00:08:16,230 where we go and we kind of learned to 213 00:08:16,230 --> 00:08:18,063 put up the outdoor hospital . We 214 00:08:18,063 --> 00:08:20,174 learned to be in that environment and 215 00:08:20,174 --> 00:08:22,341 go over the paperwork and learn how to 216 00:08:22,341 --> 00:08:24,750 do your job in a field type setting . 217 00:08:25,240 --> 00:08:27,462 At what point did you breathe a sigh of 218 00:08:27,462 --> 00:08:29,462 relief saying , okay , I'm safe now 219 00:08:29,462 --> 00:08:31,684 when I took that selfie on the airplane 220 00:08:31,684 --> 00:08:33,573 to send our leadership that we're 221 00:08:33,573 --> 00:08:37,340 leaving . What sort of regiment care or 222 00:08:37,340 --> 00:08:39,451 any program are you involved in right 223 00:08:39,451 --> 00:08:41,507 now ? If you'd like to talk about to 224 00:08:41,507 --> 00:08:43,673 help you come to terms and be at peace 225 00:08:43,673 --> 00:08:45,784 with what happened to you or what you 226 00:08:45,784 --> 00:08:49,260 were involved in ? Well , I guess , you 227 00:08:49,260 --> 00:08:51,371 know , just find someone you can talk 228 00:08:51,371 --> 00:08:53,593 to because it is a lot to process , you 229 00:08:53,593 --> 00:08:55,940 know , um , because you like for me , I 230 00:08:55,940 --> 00:08:58,150 can speak for me . I've always just 231 00:08:58,150 --> 00:09:00,372 been , you know , big , I'm a guy . You 232 00:09:00,372 --> 00:09:02,539 know , you think that you think you're 233 00:09:02,539 --> 00:09:04,872 bulletproof and that nothing , you know , 234 00:09:04,872 --> 00:09:07,130 affects you . So while it was all 235 00:09:07,130 --> 00:09:09,241 happening , you didn't think about it 236 00:09:09,241 --> 00:09:11,463 when you come back . You know , you get 237 00:09:11,463 --> 00:09:13,630 that realization , you know , actually 238 00:09:13,630 --> 00:09:17,190 what you were in . So it makes it , I 239 00:09:17,190 --> 00:09:20,160 don't know no one . It's just , it was 240 00:09:20,160 --> 00:09:22,382 just , it was a tough , tough situation 241 00:09:22,382 --> 00:09:25,060 and I don't think you're too big to not 242 00:09:25,060 --> 00:09:27,060 get the help you need or to talk to 243 00:09:27,060 --> 00:09:29,940 somebody . So because it was a tough 244 00:09:29,940 --> 00:09:32,162 situation and I felt , you know , we're 245 00:09:32,162 --> 00:09:35,730 all gonna remember , you know forever , 246 00:09:35,740 --> 00:09:38,550 but just , you know , people shouldn't 247 00:09:38,940 --> 00:09:40,829 if you feel like you need to talk 248 00:09:40,829 --> 00:09:43,051 someone you should and get the help you 249 00:09:43,051 --> 00:09:45,162 need because it was a tough situation 250 00:09:45,162 --> 00:09:47,330 when we got back , we were able to see 251 00:09:47,330 --> 00:09:50,550 the mental health providers here and 252 00:09:50,560 --> 00:09:52,616 they actually got us in because it's 253 00:09:52,616 --> 00:09:54,782 such a lot of line right now . So they 254 00:09:54,782 --> 00:09:56,671 worked us in to make sure we were 255 00:09:56,671 --> 00:09:58,893 priority and making sure we were okay . 256 00:09:58,893 --> 00:10:00,671 So when we went back out to our 257 00:10:00,671 --> 00:10:02,560 civilian lives , we were mentally 258 00:10:02,560 --> 00:10:04,590 prepared and enable and they really 259 00:10:04,590 --> 00:10:07,310 harped on and finding a group that you 260 00:10:07,310 --> 00:10:10,010 feel comfortable speaking to and 261 00:10:10,010 --> 00:10:12,066 talking with and keeping in constant 262 00:10:12,066 --> 00:10:15,470 communication and that's mhm These two , 263 00:10:16,450 --> 00:10:18,520 I am not necessarily comfortable 264 00:10:18,520 --> 00:10:21,660 sharing my story exactly with anybody 265 00:10:21,670 --> 00:10:23,837 except for them because they know what 266 00:10:23,837 --> 00:10:25,837 I went through and what it was like 267 00:10:25,837 --> 00:10:28,003 over there and I feel comfortable with 268 00:10:28,003 --> 00:10:30,380 them . One final question and you can 269 00:10:30,380 --> 00:10:32,602 take a moment to think about this . But 270 00:10:32,602 --> 00:10:34,750 if we were to have a , 271 00:10:36,640 --> 00:10:39,030 a group of individuals that are going 272 00:10:39,030 --> 00:10:42,210 on their first deployment , thinking 273 00:10:42,210 --> 00:10:43,932 about what you went through in 274 00:10:43,932 --> 00:10:45,932 Afghanistan , what advice would you 275 00:10:45,932 --> 00:10:48,970 give them , take it seriously ? You 276 00:10:48,970 --> 00:10:52,870 know , learn all your training , do 277 00:10:52,870 --> 00:10:55,390 everything , you know , but have fun , 278 00:10:55,400 --> 00:10:58,010 go there and because on the deployment 279 00:10:58,020 --> 00:11:00,760 you meet so many people and you build 280 00:11:00,770 --> 00:11:03,710 lifelong relationships , these will be 281 00:11:03,710 --> 00:11:06,170 my friends forever . Um and then also , 282 00:11:06,170 --> 00:11:08,392 you know , our Norwegian counterparts , 283 00:11:08,392 --> 00:11:10,726 you know , friends just do your mission , 284 00:11:10,726 --> 00:11:12,892 but you're gonna get so much enjoyment 285 00:11:12,892 --> 00:11:15,870 so much out of it . Just , you know , 286 00:11:15,880 --> 00:11:17,991 just be ready for the ride . I mean , 287 00:11:17,991 --> 00:11:20,350 it's it's a great one to be on . We had 288 00:11:20,350 --> 00:11:22,683 an unusual perspective because we again , 289 00:11:22,683 --> 00:11:24,961 you know , Shutting down a 20-year war . 290 00:11:24,961 --> 00:11:27,017 We didn't know we were going to walk 291 00:11:27,017 --> 00:11:29,620 into that . Um , but all the training 292 00:11:29,620 --> 00:11:31,990 we did even here or especially when we 293 00:11:31,990 --> 00:11:35,170 went downrange all the mass casualty 294 00:11:35,170 --> 00:11:37,392 exercises and training and putting I be 295 00:11:37,392 --> 00:11:40,380 a gear on weapons training , take it 296 00:11:40,380 --> 00:11:42,269 serious , but again , have a good 297 00:11:42,269 --> 00:11:44,324 attitude about it , because the only 298 00:11:44,324 --> 00:11:46,547 thing you can control of that is is how 299 00:11:46,547 --> 00:11:48,602 you perceive in your attitude . So , 300 00:11:48,602 --> 00:11:50,602 you know , have a good attitude and 301 00:11:50,602 --> 00:11:52,824 take it serious . I think , I think you 302 00:11:52,824 --> 00:11:52,510 nailed that one . Thank you for 303 00:11:52,520 --> 00:11:54,910 listening to our story For the 908 304 00:11:54,920 --> 00:11:57,260 Airlift Wing . I'm major John T . Storm 305 00:11:57,260 --> 00:11:59,482 Chief of Public Affairs . Thank you for 306 00:11:59,482 --> 00:12:01,704 listening to the stories of these brave 307 00:12:01,704 --> 00:12:01,160 airmen .