What Do You Mean, Live Grenade?

I was orginally in the army from 1966 to 1970. Then, I went back to college and got my degree in accounting. After working five years as an accountant, I went back in the Army in 1978.

I was sent to Fort Leonard Woods, MO for what they called "Minute Man" training. This was a two week course for prior service people from all military services who were coming into the Army. It was during this time I learned why people who had been there referred to it as Fort Lost-in-the-Woods.

Most of us in my training company were ex-Army, but we had a few who had been Navy, Air Force, or Marines. One fellow who had previously been in the Air Force had been a little worried at first. According to him, he had been born with a silver spoon in his moutn and had never really done anything physical or adventuresome, and this accelerated version of Basic Training was almost too much for him.

However, he held up pretty well, and, as the end of the course drew near, he was beginning to feel quite the soldier. One night, he was wondering what was going to happen the next day, so he wandered down to the end of the barracks to read the training schedule posted on the bulletin board.

As he read, he asked, "Hey! What does this mean? 'Live Grenade Throw'!"

Most of us did not realize at first that he was totally serious. Finally, as he stood there expectantly, one of us said, "You throw a live grenade."

Silence on his part. Then, "What do you mean, 'live' grenade?"

Then, he asked again, "Do you mean a REAL LIVE grenade? One that actually explodes?"

Getting several yep's, yeah's, uh-hu's, and nods his face crumbled. I think his last words before the barracks lights went out were, "Oh my God!"

When I fell asleep, he was pacing up and down the center of the squad bay.

He did okay, by the way. Only one guy fumbled his grenade but one of the guys in the pit with him kicked it through the hole into the sump and nobody was hurt.

My personal hand grenade story occured when I was going through Basic Combat Training at Fort Jackson, SC in 1966.

One fellow in our unit had never thrown so much as a rock in his life. During practice, I actually saw a dummy grenade backwards out of his hand as he tried to throw it.

When he threw his live grenade, he threw it straight up in the air. Fortunately, it fell just on the other side of the barricade and no one was hurt. Unfortunately, his position was directly in front of a viewing platform occupied by several officers and senior NCO's (Noncommissioned Officers). They were treated to the sight of a live grenade rising in the air directly in front of them.

We who were waiting our turns down below were treated to the sight of all those dignitaries, most of whom were highly decorated combat veterans, scurrying towards the exit at the back of the platform. The guys in the pit with the poor guy who had thrown the grenade did their jobs. They threw him to the ground and fell on top of him.

When he came out of the pits, he was bruised and shaken, but at least he was alive.