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A combat injury can be a soldier's worst nightmare.
One of the most reassuring sounds they can hear
is that medical evacuation, or medevac, is on the way.
The soldiers of Charlie Company, 7th Battalion, of the 158th Aviation Regiment
ensure that medical attention is never far away.
The 7th of the 158th is an Oregon National Guard unit
that provides mountain rescue when at home,
and their experiences have carried over to this deployment.
Saving people is basic,
it's humanity at its best,
so it doesn't matter what race they are,
what background they are.
We just save them, and that's what we do.
[Henderson] Medevacs are just one part of the 7th of the 158th's mission.
Many times the injured need to be brought to more advanced care.
So we'll go do basically a CASF run, is what we call it.
It's a Contingency Air Staging Facility here,
so we'll go pick up patients at other FOBs and bring them back here
so they can stage for their evacuation out of country.
So we're the first line guys that bring them up here to start their journey back home
or to a higher level of care or higher echelon of care.
[Henderson] Soldiers of the 7th of the 158th enjoy being able to help people
and offer lifesaving care.
My favorite part of the mission itself
is being able to help people, being able to do good work,
do good things for both Americans here and also for the Iraqis
who really need the support as well.
It feels good to go out and do a mission and know that you get to be
at the tip of the medical spear, helping people,
and ensuring that they survive when otherwise they might not
in such an austere environment.
[Henderson] Major Vallee also said that he and his soldiers
are always ready to move when a call comes in for help.
Army PFC Mark Henderson, Joint Base Balad, Iraq.