Mike in Macedonia
English & American Troops on patrol in Kosovo.
"Zdravo!" (Hello in Macedonian)
Welcome to my Homepage! This is my first attempt to get a web page up and running, so please bare with me as I get it looking better. This page is best viewed with "Microsoft Internet Explorer." AOL's built in viewer does not support the proper fonts.
 | I arrived in Macedonia on February 26, 2000. I landed for my first time in the Icy and Cold Balkans, at the Skopje International Airport, in The Republic of Macedonia. It took me 14 hours of flying to get here. and Two very long flights! After arriving in Macedonia, I went to Kosovo for one week. What a long week that was. I was living in a old army tent, and it was very cold and extremely muddy there. I have never seen such a muddy place in my whole life. However, I was lucky enough to get sent back down to Camp Able Sentry (C.A.S.), in Petrovec, Macedonia. |
| Camp Able Sentry is a primary US-KFOR/NATO Instillation located on the old Yugoslavian Air Force Base at Skopje International Airport, in Petrovec, Macedonia. The Camp and International Airport are about 10 miles south of Skopje, the capital of the Republic of Macedonia. Skopje is the seat of both Government, education and Culture in the Republic. With a population estimated at over 600,000 people, Skopje is also the largest city in the Republic and in what used to be Southern Yugoslavia. The Camp it self is a large complex with a helicopter airfield, a command and support center, a large inbound/outbound processing center, and multiple MWR facilities. Troops not permanently assigned to CAS live in "Tent City." The troops that are assigned to CAS live in several former Yugoslav multi-story dormitories. |
This is a picture of the base with the mountains in the background. This picture was taken back in March, 2000.
| I was the Station Chief at the Camp Able Sentry Fire Department until Early July 2000. The CAS Fire Department operates both it's structural firefighting and it's airfield crash fire units out of a single fire station. When I first arrived at CAS, the fire station was located in an old Army Tent. Right before I left Macedonia we moved into our new permanently built fire station. The CAS Fire Dept. operates a new fleet of firefighting apparatus which includes: One 1999 KME, 1500 GPM Pumper; One 1999 KME 1500 Gallon Tanker; and a 1999 750 Gallon Rapid Intervention Vehicle (airport crash truck). My shifts assigned manpower was 8 personnel, with the department running 2 shifts (24 hours each) around the clock for required mission support and Camp safety. The CAS Fire Department is responsible for protecting all U.S. and KFOR Military assets in The Republic of Macedonia, an area the size of the state of West Virginia, with a Camp population of up to 5000 U.S. Troops, and an additional 5000 NATO Troops in surrounding camps (English, Danish, Dutch, Belgian, Norwegian, Italian, French, Spanish and Polish). |
PICS:
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Camp Able Sentry Fire Dept:
Firefighters prepare to attack a vehicle fire.
Fire Department Bunker:
A simple reminder of the seriousness of our mission.
No walk in the park:
A fellow firefighter and I, remove a pilot during a Mass Casualty Exercise at Camp Able Sentry.
Still No walk in the Park:
Two fellow firefighters and I, at a major propane leak at the base D-FAC (Chow Hall). We were on scene for 3 hours in 90+ degree temperatures. Luckily the incident caused no major injuries or loss/Damage of adjacent property.
DYNAMIC RESPONSE 2000
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During my stay at Camp Able Sentry, we hosted "Dynamic Response 2000-Kosovo." This was a massive military build up and deployment exercise to show critical support of the current KFOR Multi-national Peace Keeping Force. This included the arrival at CAS, of more than an additional 5000 troops, 28 aircraft, and numerous support vehicles (Tanks, Hummers, and Light Artillery). The exercises lasted a total of 30 days, with no reported fire losses at Camp Able Sentry, and only a few minor troop injuries. The mission was deemed a success by NATO Officials. |
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"DOVIDENJA!"
This page was last updated on: 08/25/03
