“Sir…”
The two teams of four began to unload various steel and aluminium boxes from the rear and side doors of both trucks, one particular piece of equipment which caught my eye appeared to open up in three sections…
“What would that be Sergeant…?”
“Bill please…It’s a portable x ray machine, we’ll have a little look see from the exterior first…You said you personally examined the outer skin of the boxes…?
“That’s right…”
“Well Iain, we have all the kit with us…Belt and braces is what I always teach and walk softly and carry a rather large pigstick is what I always say…! Move your men in Lieutenant…”
“Sir…! Thomas, Mangan and Carver…Deploy the x ray…”
As we watched the men of 621 EOD move the x ray machine into position I stood next to the Sergeant…
“What exactly is a pigstick…?”
“Chief, a pigstick is a disrupter, a tool we use close in to the device which injects water at a high velocity to hopefully dynamically separate the key components of the VBIED…”
“VBIED…?”
“Ah…! Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device… Don’t look so worried Iain…! I’ll keep you up to speed with the acronyms…We have a firing line and an electronic exploder which we attach to a power cartridge within the pigstick so we can detonate remotely…”
“These pigsticks, they work well then…?”
“Oh yes Iain…There’s a high probability of detonation avoidance…We’ll probably find these two aren’t armed… PIRA would only do that when they have them in their final positions…”
Lieutenant Jenkins came trotting over to join us…
“Sir the x ray reveals four oil drums filled with ammonium nitrate, probably fertiliser, with a plastic core suggesting Semtex… Each of the four cores is wired to a plastic explosive located centrally on the drum tops, again probably Semtex which has a remote initiator; until we can get in close we don’t know what kind…”
“And what of the ramp Lieutenant…?”
“We’ve concluded that there is nothing antisocial attached, however we will lower it with a hook and line sir…Lance Corporal Thomas and Gunner Mangan are about to prepare the pigstick and deploy the wheelbarrow…”
“First class Jenkins…You may proceed…” “Sir…!”
“Could you translate all of that please Sergeant…?”
“Indeed… We are essentially looking at two devices in one… Semtex and Fertilizer… The command initiator is to detonate the first device, the Semtex; this in turn detonates the fertilizer, the second device…”
Signalman Paul Carver approached the rear of the first horsebox and attached a thin line to each locking bolt these in turn were connected to a thicker central line…The object of the procedure was to release the bolts then commence a controlled lowering of the ramp…As we watched, the tension was palpable…I had become aware of my perspiration, cooling my skin in the chilly night air, I surreptitiously wiped my sweaty palms on the sides of my trousers… I met Charlie’s gaze, he too felt the same, pursing his lips and letting out a deep sigh as the ramp slowly lowered inch by inch, the soft metallic clank as it met with the courtyard cobbles was magnified in the still, quiet night to the point where I tensed thinking this was game over….
Jesus…! I thought, how did these guys do it…? For decades now British EOD Squads had walked directly into the path of mortal danger, had seen first-hand the barbaric carnage these devices cause… Had seen close comrades who they, no doubt, recently raised a pint with, shared family intimacies with, literally blown to pieces…Had attended the funerals, offering the devastated families support, only to return, stand tall, suit up and do it all again…
“Clear one…!”
Signalman Carver’s call brought me back to the present… He approached the rear of the box cautiously then bathed the space occupied by the four drums with ultra violet light he then flooded it with CO2. He then called…
“Clear two…!”
At this point the wheelbarrow juddered to life as Lance Corporal Thomas switched on the Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) using a control panel which hung on a harness around his neck. A trifold arm was fixed centrally on the caterpillar tracked drone which he and Gunner Mangan had attached the pigstick… Mangan was carefully paying attention to the firing wire and hose which the Sergeant had explained would activate the pigstick and hopefully render the device useless, he was laying it loosely on the ground to the left of the ROV.
Sergeant Mortimer and 2nd Lieutenant Gibb joined us…
“Iain, the Lieutenant has further sinister discoveries for us…First the good news, the house is clear, there is nothing obvious and nothing hidden in the walls or under floorboards…We’ve all had experience of Northern Ireland, believe me if there was any devices, devious or otherwise, Gibb and his men would have found them…Now for the bad news… There are four vehicles in the stables, three of which are small Ford Escort vans which have distinct liveries and have what appear to be 50lb remote initiated Semtex devices behind the front seats. The vans are clearly the delivery systems. The other is larger white van which for them moment is empty.”
I knew there was more; Charlie and I remained quiet…
“In another area of the stable complex there is a huge quantity of slurry which has been prepared for the further amount of Semtex and the remainder of a box of detonators which has also been discovered… This is a huge bomb factory…”
“We need to evacuate about two square miles, don’t we…?”
“Well, yes and no…The Lieutenant and his men have already dealt with the detonators…Charlie will back me on this…Two years ago we responded to intelligence which Charlie gave us when he was Station Chief in Belfast… There had been a huge bomb factory discovered in a dairy in County Armagh, do you remember Charlie…?”
“Aye I do, there was something like 25,000lbs of prepared ammonium nitrate fertiliser and 150lbs of Semtex and I’d say a third of it was ready to go… That was you and your lads who neutralized it, was it Bill…?”
“It was, and the thing is, we did it under the noses of the sleeping public… Much of this is ready for transportation only, it’s primed as such but not armed for detonation…With care and consideration we will have it safe…”
“Ok…What do you need, I’ll make it happen…”
“Yes… We’ve heard that about you… News travelled fast from Javelin and Aldergrove… We need to get these vehicles out by rope and pulled by hand, we need logistics to supply arc lights for visibility and you Sergeant Bulmer need to have more men at your disposal to cordon off the A25 junction…Then we can begin…”
“Ok”
I walked to the perimeter of the stables and stood beyond the gates as I called Robin, I was still mindful of my cellphone and what its electronic signal might do…
“Yes Chief…?”
“Robin we need three things… more Police to cordon off the A25… The logistics boys to deliver Arc lights and we need to know when Steve Case is ready to move on the house in Romford…”
“What have you there…?”
“Two 2,500lb ammonium nitrate and Semtex devices ready for transportation and three 50lb Semtex devices already in their delivery systems ready for transportation…A huge quantity of prepared slurry and more Semtex…”
“Jesus Christ…! You’ll have whatever you need, I’m ringing the Home Secretary and the Prime Minister…I’ll call you back…”
I returned to the congregation watching the wheelbarrow edge closer to the horsebox…
“Consider it all on its way Sergeant…” “Very good…”
“What did Robin say laddie…?
“He’s calling the Home Sec and the Prime Minister now…”
At that moment a black Lotus Carlton pulled up to the gates quietly, the rear passenger didn’t wait for the driver to open the door… A middle aged woman came striding over and offered her hand to Char
lie…
“Section Chief… I’m Anne Pendleton, Chief Constable of Kent Constabulary…”
“Pleased to meet you lassie…He’s Compass Section Chief…”
Charlie was pointing at me with rather an amused look on his face…
“Oh…? He is…?
“Yes Chief how may I help you…? We are at rather a delicate stage in proceedings…”
“I’ve just had rather interesting conversation with the Home Secretary… Do you know of him…?
“Yes Chief… He visits my office regularly, now if we could hurry things along please. The Sergeant and his men are about to make safe the first of two 2,500lb bombs…?”
“I haven’t been briefed…? And the use of my manpower…?” “Have your men carry on Sergeant…”
I rather rudely took her by the arm and lead her back to her vehicle…
“Ok… Where you are now is the site of probably the biggest bomb factory ever discovered in the UK… Five prepared devices have been found and enough prepared explosive to build another five… There is an active safehouse in Romford which SO12 and 13 are to raid at midnight… The four inside are responsible for this little lot… A fifth who had been staying in the house travelled from Harwich port and tried to commit murder in Germany three days ago… They are also responsible for the Chelmsford murder… She was the wife of one of my men…Right…! Consider yourself briefed…!”
She stood stoically trying to comprehend the gravity of it all and then to her credit she said…
“Right…! I’ll have backup for 12 and 13 standing by ready to move if they need it in Kent… You don’t have to wait for the army to deliver arc lights, we have them for major incidents I’ll have them sent straight over from Maidstone…We need officers on the A25 too for traffic control… I’ll have that set up shortly…
“Thankyou Chief, I appreciate it…” “Iain isn’t it…?”
“Yes Ma’am.”
“Anne… do you know when I was told…? Fifteen minutes ago…!”
“That would make me right pissed off…! I assumed you were being kept informed via my contacts with the Home Sec…? I know Essex have been…”
“Not a bit of it… Here is my number… If there is anything you need…?”
“Coffee and sandwiches…!”
“I’ll see what can be brought from the mess in Maidstone, so what is happening now…?”
“Come on, they are about to neutralize the first device with the pigstick…”
We walked back to the group just as Thomas was manoeuvring the wheelbarrow at the rear of the horsebox. Instantly spotlights mounted on the front of the ROV bathed the opening, Lance Corporal Thomas informed us that the cameras were rolling and he had clear images on his monitor which like the console, was strapped around him on a lanyard…
“Moving in”
We watched as the Wheelbarrow rolled onto then up the horsebox loading ramp…
“Chaps… If we retreat to the truck we can watch on the monitors… There is also a degree of blast protection…”
The barrow approached the nearest drum then….Nothing…Lance Corporal Thomas’s head appeared at the door…
“Sir the pigstick is a negative approach… There is not enough space to manoeuvre the arm and remain stable…The device will require a manual defusing…”
“Very well Lance Corporal, retrieve the ROV after more images are gained.”
“Sir”
“We’ll have the same problem with the second device of course. Possibly one of the motivations for PIRA to utilise the horseboxes as a delivery system… Chief Constable…? Your arc lights would be useful about now…”
“I’d say ten minutes Sergeant”
“Lieutenant Gibb…Your solution for the Multiple VBIEDs if you please…?”
“Sir the medium sized black boxes attached similarly to all three devices appear to hold electronic circuitry to command and initiate…Lance Corporal Wiseman is preparing the nitrogen for a Freeze Neutralizing Kit which we plan to couple to a Remote Activated Injector Kit. Once we are confident of the penetration we’ll remove the wiring and then the device.”
“How long until the FNK is ready…?”
“Fully set up and ready to initiate, I’d say another five minutes sir.” “Carry on Lance Corporal…”
I wandered outside finding Lance Corporal Thomas breaking down the appendages from the wheel barrow; I lit a cigarette and offered the packet to him…
“Thanks Chief…It would be nice to have a smaller barrow, maybe in a year or two.”
“What’s your plan now Steve…?”
“Get up close and personal like…The good old fashioned way, it shouldn’t be too difficult neither one is armed… We’ll have a good look at the box first, roof, chassis everything but I think a good dose of nitrogen then snip the wires, that’ll do the trick…The drums will remain in situ until we remove the Semtex cores but again with the wires snipped it should be straight forward, they aren’t particularly sophisticated and they are packed in that way to add to the blast pressure… Did I hear right before…? SO12 and 13 are to raid their safehouse at midnight…?”
“You did, we’ve been trying to watch one or two of them for a while now. The incident you heard about in Germany has been part of it.”
“Christ…!”
I walked to where Charlie was leaning against one of the gates…. “How you doing Charlie, bloody long day…!”
“Aye laddie that it is…God, I’d thought I’d left all this behind, well we saw it coming, I just hope it’s the only one… Have you seen the liveries on the vans…? There’s two for the Highways Agency and one with Railtrack on the side. I hope there are plans in the house when Steve and Frank move in.”
“It’s huge Charlie and it’s been planned for a long time. The Lance Corporal has said the devices aren’t particularly clever, there may be something in that, maybe not but the plan is very sophisticated.”
“Aye… Och now, I wonder what we have here…?”
Two Kent Constabulary Ford Transits had pulled up outside, the driver of the first approached…
“I’m looking for a Compass Section Chief…?”
“That’s me, what do you have officer…?”
“Arc lights, three in each van… I suggest you roll your sleeves up…Police don’t lug furniture…”
“That’s enough of that Constable…! Get them out and on…Now…!”
“Shit…! That’s the Chief…! Yes Ma’am…!
The officer ran to the vans…
“Lads get a move on; the Chief Constable is here…!” “Sorry Chief, my boys can be a little brusque.”
“Och now… A brew and a butty and I’ll forget everything…”
Charlie had responded light heartedly…
“Eh and that bloke you just pissed off George, she just called him Chief…Watch you’ll be a minder in Mothercare by tomorrow…”
“Shut up Terry and plug these bloody things in…”
Five minute later the arc light were blazing and 621 EOD were positioning them best for their needs. The police officer approached again…
“Er… That’s them set up Chief… We have four officers at the A25 junction too. No one will get up here.”
“Thanks George… nice job.”
Charlie and I returned to the trucks were a table with cellophane wrapped sandwiches and six flasks of coffee had been placed…
“If there is nothing else gentlemen, I’ll leave now…I want to make sure SO12 and 13 have all they need for midnight if they turn west…”
Anne Pendleton looked around at the eight men enjoying a breather…
“The best of luck lads…” “Thank you Ma’am…”
“Iain, You have my number, please call if you require further assistance.”
“Yes Anne, I will thank you… I’m very grateful for your help.” “You just stop the bastards…”
And with that the Chief Constable of Kent was gone… The EOD lads
looked at each other… It was time to do the business…
We decided that the best course of action was for LC Thomas and his boys to neutralize the boxes then we’d collectively pull the vans from the stables allowing LC Gibb and his men to do the same. There was a tanker en route from Northolt to deal with the remaining slurry once it was made sure it was safe to transport…
It was now 2215…2nd Lieutenant Jenkins and Lance Corporal Thomas approached the first box examining the full bodywork and chassis…
“Clear…!”
Both Ammunition Technical Officers were now ready to enter; dressed in their full blast kit this looked cumbersome although they achieved it with a great degree of alacrity. Thomas entered second carrying what Sergeant Mortimer described as an Autonomous Cryogenic Delivery System. This would be placed against the electronic cluster designed to initiate the device and then remotely detonated entering the electronics and freezing them… Jenkins would then return and snip the wires and hopefully retrieve the plastic explosive. With the remote camera and delivery system in place the two ATOs retreated, flipped on the viewing monitor and connected the electronic wires to their command box…
Bearings: The Compass Trilogy Part One Page 19