MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- A ghostly voice slips softly down tight alleys, haunting mud-colored buildings and sand-strewn streets. A tower teeters above the heart of the town as women clad in full black robes travel in pairs through downtown markets. Men with AK-47 rifles peek from second floor windows, peering through iron sights with eyes half-closed by the sun. They wait inside the darkness for the signal to open fire on a Marine patrol that has materialized from the center of a rolling cloud of dust.
This scenario played out time and again during the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s Expeditionary Strike Group Exercise as Marines trained for their upcoming deployment in a revamped Combat Town aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C. Trading a church for a mosque, Combat Town now resembles an Iraqi village and allows not only 24th MEU Marines to gain experience in a realistic environment, but potentially affords all East Coast units the chance to use the village to train, said Col. Daniel P. Kelly, 24th MEU executive officer, who oversaw the village’s construction.
“This is for anybody who wants to train in a little piece of Iraq,” said Kelly. “It’s extremely important to have an area like this. Hopefully this evolves into something more permanent.”
The genesis of the idea to refurbish Combat Town came from the success of the cultural and combat immersion training that the MEU worked through during its Training in an Urban Environment Exercise aboard Naval Station Norfolk, Va., in March. Working closely with the same Hollywood production company that created a smaller-scale village in Norfolk, Marines painted, built and sculpted the town until – a short five days later – it was transformed into an area that transports Marines back to the deserts of Iraq.
“What you’re seeing is that this really happens and it happens just like this,” explained Col. Ronald Johnson, 24th MEU commanding officer. “We’re trying to educate these Marines in Iraqi language and culture so that they understand that they’re not the only culture on earth.”
“You can do incredible things – as much as your imagination can do,” added Stu Segall, owner of Strategic Operations, the production company responsible for the explosions, actors and authentic casualty make-up used in the village. “We’re not only saving Marines’ lives, we’re helping save Iraqi lives as well.”
Although the actors and special effects will disappear after the MEU has completed training, the village will remain intact for future units to use, said Kelly. He said that the MEU’s long-term desire for Combat Town is to have II Marine Expeditionary Force and MCB Camp Lejeune take over the overhauled site and continue to develop it by adding more permanent structures, sparing units here the expense of traveling to the West Coast for this type of training.
“We can use the money we save by keeping units here to invest in the town,” added Kelly. “It’s important to continue to develop training. This was to show that in a short time with a small number of people that you can get things up to go out there and do this.”
However, the most telling aspect of the Combat Town alterations lay in the experiences of the Marines who have battled through the explosions, casualties and simulated small-arms fire inside the village. Staff Sgt. William S. Burgos, a weapons platoon sergeant with Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, said that it’s by far the best cultural and tactical training his platoon has received, adding that, “as long as there is war in Iraq, this will be an invaluable part of work-ups for any unit looking to deploy.”