First you hear the sirens, then the automated, ‘INCOMING – INCOMING – INCOMING.’ You hit the ground.

You have no idea where the danger is. Seconds later, you jump up and run, not to hide but to do your job, to keep the systems in the fight. Other civilians are sheltering, we stay outside. 

Because if we quit, people die.

When the situation suddenly deteriorated, the game changed. Getting people out, before we were overrun, became our only focus. We were a tiny island caught in a mounting avalanche of hostility. 

As everyone left, life on the base grew ever more tense and challenging. No waste removal. No water sanitation. Carefully rationed provisions. Limited comms with the outside world. Very little sleep. The enemy never sleep. Firefight flashes in the night. Explosions and sounds of the city collapsing. The end crept closer every day.

So, what do you do? You focus on the mission and each other, of course. Your life in their hands, their life in yours.

We flew out on August 31st – the third to last aircraft. Once aboard, we just sat staring at each other. We’d been in the field for nearly two years, all-in-all. 

Now, we were all going home, the mission was complete. 

Time to start planning the next one.
 

Carlitos Ramos
First Line Supervisor supporting Defense Programs, Serco Americas