An EOD Technician Explains What Life is Really Like in the Field - Business Insider

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There is an

unassailable

prestige that

come from

being an

Explosive

Ordnance

Disposal

(EOD) member

in the military.

They're as cool as jet pilots, with the hands of a

heart surgeon who operates on patients that can

detonate and kill everyone within sight.

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From what they say there's nothing like it.

We found this Reddit thread

(http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments

/qzbd3/iama_bomb_technician_amaa/) earlier in

the year by an EOD tech who describes what it's

really like detonating bombs meant to kill

American troops.

We found it eye-opening and thought it worth

sharing again. We hope you agree.

[W]ire color doesn't matter one bit, it's just a rubber coating. When

we make training devices we use all one color, or multiple for

funsies.

I've actually never disarmed a live device with a timer, they're just

not that common, most devices are command detonated or victim

operated [i.e. set off by the victim of the explosion].

[On "The Hurt Locker"]: You cannot pick up 90lb 155m artillery

rounds by the half dozen while they're all connected by detonating

cord. While the main character is more of a cowboy style risk taker,

real bomb techs are far more tedious, calculated, and safe.

[On "Bomb Patrol Afghanistan"]: [Enemy combatants] are always

watching and filming us. Anything on BPA has been scrubbed and

approved. The risks are always calculated and there's a lot of

lighthearted joking and back and forth, smart ass remarks, and of

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Wikimedia Commons/Hexogen (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EOD_9.jpg)

course quick temper flares.

Source: Reddit (http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments

/qzbd3/iama_bomb_technician_amaa/)

You have to want it, it's volunteer only. I love blowing s*** up! On a

more serious note, I don't have a death wish and this job makes me

feel alive. I like to think I'm saving lives and helping the greater

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Flickr/Marion Doss (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ooocha/3051244623/sizes/m/in/photostream/)

good.

One less

device is

one less

kid dead

in a

landmine

is Laos, or

one less

family

without a

mom, dad,

son, daughter and so on in America or Baghdad.

I'm pushing $75-80k I think. But my benefits are all military so I

don't pay for those. The job gives us special pays as well.

There isn't much reward other than personal satisfaction we are

hardly in the public eye. The money is nice but you can't use it as a

pink mist.

People that burn out usually keep it under control and then they

just get out. You volunteer for this job, you can say f*** it I'm done

at any time because the Army can't technically make you walk down

and disarm a bomb.



It is made out of Kevlar and steel plates.

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Flickr/Official U.S. Navy Imagery (http://www.flickr.com/photos/usnavy/6077597418/sizes/m/in/photostream/)


Anything over say 10lbs of pure high explosive is scary because it

negates the protective effects of the bomb suit at 0 ft.



We always

bring

robots.

Always.

The bots

are great

because it

makes our

lives

easier and

safer.

There are devices that require a delicate human touch though,

using a robot is like use a sledgehammer to drive a nail.

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You do develop an attachment to your robot. It's like a dog. We

named our robot and everything. That piece of machinery is an

extension of you.

We had a Talon with a pink teddy bear that we taped to the

antenna. That robot made it 11 months and survived hundreds of

incidents until he was blown up by a car bomb. RIP Scooby :'(



You

ALWAYS

assume

worst case

scenario

and

downgrade from there.

We have kits that we carry that can test for explosives, that's usually

how we confirm.

We use an Ahura product to spectroanalyze substance. It's a device

that uses a laser and whole bunch of awesome science.

I think we're averaging 20 calls a month...You're on call a week at a

time, and it rotates between teams. You also have other jobs around

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Flickr/AN HONORABLE GERMAN (http://www.flickr.com/photos/anhonorablegerman/6607530721/sizes/m/in/photostream/)

the shop like Chem guy, Supply, maintenance, etc.



If the bomb is in an area that threatens public safety or

infrastructure, then we will try to move it to a different location, if

that's not possible then will we use protective works (sand bags,

tunneling, ditching, etc) to try and mitigate the blast effects and

possible damage.

[I]f it's enclosed the first thing we do it X-ray it.

[I]f we can move it somewhere else that's #1. #2 is defusing it to

make it safe for movement. #3 is blowing it in place....of course

there's way more to all that, but those are the bare bones.



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Flickr/AN HONORABLE GERMAN (http://www.flickr.com/photos/anhonorablegerman/6612628461/sizes/m/in/photostream/)

You're basically setting off the main charge of explosives with the

energy from the counter charge (your explosives). All explosives are

sensitive to heat, shock, and friction.

We just take it out there and apply enough C-4 to countercharge the

main charge (the explosives in the device). Most of the time we

dispose by detonation.

Never really drop things....we do a few thermite and/or gasoline

burns like when we want to get rid of small caliber ammunition

since detonations will just send that shit flying everywhere.

Small arms ammo? Burn it with copious amounts of gasoline and

thermite.



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Wikimedia Commons/Petric Mihalache (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EOD_team_ready_for_the_exercise.jpg)

My favorite scenarios are hand entry procedures like backpacks,

suitcases, coolers, etc. There are so many different ways to make a

bomb that it's like solving a puzzle.

It's hard to say one scenario gives better training than the other, but

any time you have a scenario that encompasses all aspects of an

incident scene is the best.

It helps you learn how to set up perimeters, deal with fire/med

/police, ensure public safety, etc.

We train on scenarios like that frequently. Guy stepped on mine;

can't step off. Something strapped and locked to someone (usually

neck). For a mine, we'd probably have to dig a lot and come in from

the side.



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Sheep. All

the time.

Had an

artillery

projectile

stuffed

inside a

dead

sheep. We

countercharged that thing and it was raining fur.

They go for cheap and easy. Once the ordnance ran out overseas

they started making fertilizer based explosives with cheap

electronics parts.

They're usually ghetto, done in a rush. If it's a device by an

organization then it's probably neat and labeled via some internet

manual.

It's hard to describe trends because the device is left up to the

imagination of the bomb maker.



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Wikimedia Commons/U.S. Navy (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/US_Navy_051214-F-7234P-y_Officer_2nd_Class_Frank_Fazalore_positions_a_device_that_will_destroy_a_simulated_Improvised_Explosive_Device_%28IED%29.jpg)

Cell phones and cordless phones ... Car alarms, motion sensors,

acoustic to name a few. Anything is possible.

If you have a bomb in a dark room you want the room to stay dark

in case it is triggered by light. White light is more intense than light

filtered through a dark colored lens.



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Flickr/US Embassy Montevideo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/usembassy_montevideo/5241710348/sizes/m/in/photostream/)

Flickr/Official U.S. Navy Imagery (http://www.flickr.com/photos/usnavy/5601186446/sizes/m/in/photostream/)

We armed with the knowledge to construct explosive devices so that

we are better versed in knowing how they operate.

When we make devices though, we tend not to use live explosives

for safety reasons, instead we'll use some inert training aids with

speaker or buzzer penalties to indicate when they technician has set

off the device.

Sometimes we also use electric squibs or electric matches for more

realism factor.

We make them for each other. Practice makes perfect.



Can't be colorblind. While wires may not matter, different color

markings on ordnance does.

Pass a physical and mental eval, no felonies, be eligible for a top12 of 14

Flickr/The Nation Guard (http://www.flickr.com/photos/thenationalguard/4473398111/sizes/m/in/photostream/)

secret clearance, and have a valid driver's license.

School was tough, it's like drinking from a fire hose. Pracs are the

fun hands on part, class room is brutal.

We're very employable. Contracts, federal, state...there will always

be bombs in the world.

My electrical knowledge came from basic circuitry and research I

do on my own time.

I just think of it as something I love doing. Helps to be a dark

humored person though.



It's just not something I dwell on. I do take solace in the fact that if

it's my time to buy the farm that it will more than likely be swift and

painless (we call it the pretty pink mist).

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Raytheon (http://www.raytheon.com/capabilities/products/ngj/)

I try to experience as much as I can in life and tell my close friends

and family that I love and appreciate them as much as possible.



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An EOD Technician Explains What Life is Really Like in the Field - Business Insider