Page 70 - RADC Bulletin 2018

Op Trenton, South Sudan
Maj Andrew Beaven & Cpl Vicky Davis RADC
In 2016, 16 Medical Regiment were tasked with the entry operation to South Sudan with the UN. With operations tailored
to Afghanistan and Iraq, the Regiment would have to adapt to austere conditions without hard standing infrastructure.
With constant delays out to theatre, it took 12 months before we stepped onto the scorched ground of Juba, South Sudan. It was only then that I realised I was not built for temperatures of 45°C and that my tour would consist of me chasing shaded areas.
Luckily, we were shepherded to a transitional UN camp, to reorganise for a few days, before going out into the wilderness. This camp had a magical electrical system integrated into the metal frames of our accommodation and toilets. Warnings of “do not touch the frames, door handles, light switches or you will die” were part of our welcome pack. Apart from that, spirits were high.
From Juba we travelled to Malakal, where we had hard standing accommodation fitted with air con – this was very much welcomed. Unfortunately, this was not our
final destination. With immense guilt of not fulfilling our primary roles, taking up valuable space and eating resources we decided to become engineers for the duration of our stay. Working throughout the days we all learnt many new skills such as:
• HESCO building
• Irrigation construction
• Pathway cleaning
• Ablutions guard duty (who else would
stop people showering for more than
30 seconds and deter people from
flushing wet wipes down the toilets?) Working with the engineers was not only
an eye opener but immensely fun. A hard week of work was rewarded with a night in at the cook house playing games. Bingo, human horse racing, “Malakal’s Got Talent” and “Family Fortunes” were among the highlights.
Unfortunately the time came to leave Malakal “Centre Parks”. The hotter and
68 RADC BULLETIN 2018
OPERATIONAL TOUR