Two Iowa Guard soldiers remain in hospital after mortar attack

The Iowa National Guard has some new information on the 12 Iowans wounded in a mortar attack in Baghdad Wednesday. Guard spokesman, Major Greg Hapgood, says 11 of the soldiers were from the 11-33rd transportation company based in Mason City. He says nine of the unit members were treated and returned to duty. One has been transferred to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, and another is being treated at a military facility in Baghdad. A third guardmember from the 234th signal battalion in Cedar Rapids was treated and released. Hapgood says the only other information he has on the soldiers still being treated are their names: Michael Doidge and Chad Hayes. He says they don’t have any other information on their conditions, other than what the Army provided. Hapgood says the soldiers were injured at an installation called “Logistical Base Seitz”. He says it’s a base that used for re-fitting and re-supply and many other uses. Hapgood says it’s good to hear that most of the soldiers escaped without major injuries. He says if you consider the “incredible” number of miles the 11-33rd has driven, “it is somewhat miraculous that that is the worst that’s happened.” He says they’ve traveled more than one-millon-500-thousand miles since being deployed and carried more than 55-thousand tons of equipment and supplies. Hapgood credits their training and leadership as reasons they’ve been able to make it through without more problems.