Shot at twice

May 9 2003

Matthew Pardo, Evening Gazette

A Squaddie back on Teesside after two months serving in Iraq told today how he was twice caught up in two "friendly fire" incidents. Lance Corporal Steven Wallace, of Ryan Walk, Stockton, was sent to the Gulf in February and returned last night. After about five weeks stationed in Kuwait, where he was serving as a chef with the Royal Logistics Corps, L/Cpl Wallace was ordered to gather up his gear and join frontline troops marching into Iraq. It wasn't long after crossing the border that the 20-year-old got a taste of the action. Story continues ADVERTISEMENT "The first I knew that anything was wrong was when I heard someone shooting at us," said the 20-year-old. "Straight away we all got told to prepare and get all the kit ready. "The tanks rolled in to check out who was shooting at us and we got told later it had been Americans." But that wasn't his only brush with the US troops and so-called friendly fire. "Later on we were working in the desert setting something up when there were a couple of really loud explosions right next to us," said L/Cpl Wallace, who joined the Army four years ago after leaving what is now Thornaby Community School. "We all just got told to get ready for attack again and everyone was totally shocked because it was artillery fire and we hadn't been expecting it at all. "We were told later that was the Americans as well. I just never ever expected to end up in a situation like that, and it made a lot of the younger soldiers quite nervous." Despite being targeted twice by the Americans, no-one from L/Cpl Wallace's regiment was hurt in either incident. After Basra had fallen to the allied attack L/Cpl Wallace's regiment was pulled back towards the Kuwaiti border. Despite his friendly fire experiences and being part of the occupying force in Iraq throughout the war, he didn't fire a single shot. "While I was there the Iraqis were just asking for food, water and cigarettes," he said. "They seemed quite glad we were there and some of them ended up working for us. "Every time we spoke to them they shook your hand and had a joke or a laugh with you. "It's something I'm really glad to have done and we're going back in about six weeks to do peacekeeping duties." When the war broke out his contact with home was broken and anxious mum Wilma and dad Alexander didn't hear from him for three weeks. Mum Wilma said: "When we didn't hear from him it was just a nightmare. My brother served in the last Gulf War so now I know what my mum went through that time. "I was so scared every time someone was shot. I just said 'don't be from his company, don't be from his company'. "When I heard he was coming back I just kept bursting out crying. Now I'm just so glad that he's home. "I'm just sorry for the ones that didn't come back. My heart goes out to families having to cope with that."

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