We all know who Gunnery Sgt. Michael Burghardt is. The famous EOD Marine who gave insurgents the finger after being hit by an IED. His photo is famous.
I wrote a story about him before this happened to him. I know there are plenty of stories about him out there, but I'm in the process of posting all my stories to my blog since they disappeared from everywhere else.
Gunnery Sgt. Michael Burghardt, a team leader with EOD, Headquarters and Service Company, 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2d Force Service Support Group, recently returned from a tour in Iraq. While there, he approached 64 Improvised Explosive Devices, discovered and cleared an IED manufacturing house, destroyed 1,548 pieces of ordnance, two heavy machine guns, a 60mm mortar and a recoilless anti-tank gun that fires a 73mm fin-stabilized, rocket-assisted high-explosive anti-tank projectile, without a single injury.
For his actions, Burghardt, a Fountain Valley, Calif., native, was awarded the Bronze Star with combat distinguishing device. Nicknamed “Clark Kent,” by his team, he became the second in his family to receive the award. His father, Josef Burghardt, received three Bronze Stars and three Purple Hearts while serving in the Marine Corps during Vietnam.
Burghardt was attached to Regimental Combat Team 7. During the second call Burghardt’s EOD team received, their Talon, a robot used to defuse bombs, broke down.
Even without the technology Burghardt and his team was forced to push on. He gave great credit to his team for their willingness to trust him and never question him.
“I had a great team. They knew that we had a job to get done and this was the way we had to do it,” he said. “I would never put my team in any danger, though.”
Burghardt is not the only Marine on the team being awarded a medal.
Burghardt was attached to Regimental Combat Team 7. During the second call Burghardt’s EOD team received, their Talon, a robot used to defuse bombs, broke down.
Even without the technology Burghardt and his team was forced to push on. He gave great credit to his team for their willingness to trust him and never question him.
“I had a great team. They knew that we had a job to get done and this was the way we had to do it,” he said. “I would never put my team in any danger, though.”
Burghardt is not the only Marine on the team being awarded a medal.
“My team members are also being recognized for what we did,” said Burghardt. “Staff Sergeant Victor Levine is receiving a Bronze Star with combat distinguishing device and Sergeant John Camara is getting a Navy Commendation Medal with combat distinguishing device.”
In only six hours, along a treacherous 13-kilometer stretch of Alternate Supply Route Lincoln RCT-7, the EOD team was able to identify 26 IEDs and render them safe. The IEDs ranged from multiple IEDs daisy chained together to improvised rocket launchers.
Convoys traveling along the supply route had been facing heavy insurgency, Burghardt said. “We found fighting positions, dug out holes, machine guns and you could see where they had been sleeping. All they had to do was man their posts, but it’s hard to hide a battalion on the move in the middle of the desert. They knew that we were coming and they wouldn’t succeed in holding us back.”
Burghardt said the team was searching for IEDs now, which is something that the team doesn’t normally do.
“I was sitting on top of a [light-armored vehicle] looking for what I call a ‘trail of ants,’” said Burghardt. “As soon as I saw one I would get the vehicle to stop and take my Ka-Bar and wire cutters and approach the IED from a different angle and render it safe. Then my team would come in and blow it up.”
Burghardt described a “trail of ants” as what looked like somebody had tried to hide wires by burying them. He would find the route the insurgents had taken to place the IEDs and then low crawl along their footsteps until he found the receiver.
According to the summary, these actions prevented the injury or potential loss of life of numerous RCT 7 Marines moving along the route to the assembly area. Further, the assault element was able to go into the attack on time as a direct result of the actions of Burghardt and his team.
The summary continued to read, April 23, Burghardt and his team were called back to Alternate Supply Route Lincoln to clear four more IEDs, some of which had been placed in the same location within the past 12 hours. Despite the fact that some of the IEDs were probably secondary devices aimed at killing Burghardt and his team, they proceeded to the site and destroyed the IEDs.
Despite his award, the modest Burghardt feels that he was just doing his job. “I’m supposed to be great, that’s why I’m the team leader,” he said.
After returning from their deployment, Brughardt and his team put together training packages with the real-world experience they gained while in Iraq for Marines and Sailors getting ready to deploy.
“The combined effort of all of us at EOD Platoon put together realistic training packages for deploying units and EOD members based off real EOD responses in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said Burghardt.
In only six hours, along a treacherous 13-kilometer stretch of Alternate Supply Route Lincoln RCT-7, the EOD team was able to identify 26 IEDs and render them safe. The IEDs ranged from multiple IEDs daisy chained together to improvised rocket launchers.
Convoys traveling along the supply route had been facing heavy insurgency, Burghardt said. “We found fighting positions, dug out holes, machine guns and you could see where they had been sleeping. All they had to do was man their posts, but it’s hard to hide a battalion on the move in the middle of the desert. They knew that we were coming and they wouldn’t succeed in holding us back.”
Burghardt said the team was searching for IEDs now, which is something that the team doesn’t normally do.
“I was sitting on top of a [light-armored vehicle] looking for what I call a ‘trail of ants,’” said Burghardt. “As soon as I saw one I would get the vehicle to stop and take my Ka-Bar and wire cutters and approach the IED from a different angle and render it safe. Then my team would come in and blow it up.”
Burghardt described a “trail of ants” as what looked like somebody had tried to hide wires by burying them. He would find the route the insurgents had taken to place the IEDs and then low crawl along their footsteps until he found the receiver.
According to the summary, these actions prevented the injury or potential loss of life of numerous RCT 7 Marines moving along the route to the assembly area. Further, the assault element was able to go into the attack on time as a direct result of the actions of Burghardt and his team.
The summary continued to read, April 23, Burghardt and his team were called back to Alternate Supply Route Lincoln to clear four more IEDs, some of which had been placed in the same location within the past 12 hours. Despite the fact that some of the IEDs were probably secondary devices aimed at killing Burghardt and his team, they proceeded to the site and destroyed the IEDs.
Despite his award, the modest Burghardt feels that he was just doing his job. “I’m supposed to be great, that’s why I’m the team leader,” he said.
After returning from their deployment, Brughardt and his team put together training packages with the real-world experience they gained while in Iraq for Marines and Sailors getting ready to deploy.
“The combined effort of all of us at EOD Platoon put together realistic training packages for deploying units and EOD members based off real EOD responses in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said Burghardt.
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