Desert Danger

Tim Jackson, North Africa WWII I was lifting one of our mines when there was an explosion from the team to our right. I only heard it because there had been a momentary lull in the barrage from the big guns. We all looked, and saw that the man lifting the mines had handled one incorrectly and it had exploded. Luckily the charge in the mine wasn't big enough to kill him, but I could see that his leg had been blown off. He was thrashing around on the ground and screaming in agony. Then the big guns of our artillery opened up again. I turned back to my own mine-clearing and tried to shut the image of the wounded man out. I had to keep my hands steady and my nerves calm. I had to get this right.