An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | April 28, 2011

Iowa Guard Agribusiness Development Team saves Afghan man's eyesight

By Air Force Capt. Peter Shinn Combined Joint Task Force 101

KUNAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan - During a mission in the Sarkani District April 25, the senior combat medic for the Iowa National Guard's 734th Agribusiness Development Team provided urgent medical care to an Afghan road worker whose eyes had been accidentally doused with diesel fuel.

 

Co-workers of the injured man, Roz Amin, carried him to the Sarkani District Center shortly after the accident, which occurred on a road paving project just a few meters away. Members of the ADT were at the district center conducting a key leader engagement with the district sub-governor and other officials.

 

Amin's co-workers brought him to a member of the ADT's security forces and explained Amin had fallen into hot tar.

The security forces team member quickly located U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Michael Martinez, the ADT's senior medic, and asked Martinez if he could help Amin.

 

"When we're out on mission, our job is to treat our soldiers first, but if an Afghan has an emergency involving life, limb or eyesight, we have a duty to treat them, too," said Martinez.

 

"So when I first heard it was a burn, I was prepared for the worst, because I've seen a lot of burns at home and here in Afghanistan and it can be pretty bad."

 

However, when Martinez assessed Amin, he discovered he had only minor burns on his hands and face.

 

Working through an ADT interpreter, Martinez learned that immediately after Amin had fallen into the tar, his co-workers had pulled him out and bathed him in diesel fuel to remove the tar accidentally splashing Amin's eyes.

 

"It became clear that the primary injury was to his eyes," Martinez said. "So my focus was to clear all the fuel from his eyes to preserve his vision."

 

Martinez gently washed Amin's burns and began aggressively irrigating the injured man's eyes.

 

"I had to work with whatever I had in my aid bag, and my aid bag is primarily geared toward combat trauma, so I improvised," said Martinez. "I was also lucky to have a lot of help, because this was really a team effort."

 

The treatment team included both Afghans and Americans.

 

A friend of Amin's helped hold Amin's eyes open as Martinez irrigated them. U.S. Army Spc. Daniel Kersbergen, an ADT security forces team member, prepared and administered an intravenous fluid bag to prevent Amin from becoming dehydrated.

 

"I'm an EMT back in Iowa," Kersbergen said. "So this was just another day at the office for me."

 

After Kersbergen administered the IV, Martinez bandaged Amin's eyes and led him to a room that the employees of the district center had prepared. Through the ADT interpreter, Martinez instructed Amin to remain still for four hours and to seek additional care if his eyes did not improve.

 

Amin expressed gratitude for the treatment Martinez and Kersbergen provided him.

 

"I am a poor man," Amin said. "I do not know what I would have done if they had not helped me, and I thank them very much."

 

Martinez emphasized the outcome for Amin would probably have been grim in the absence of prompt medical attention.

 

"Without prolonged irrigation of his eyes, the chemical burning process would have continued, and he almost certainly would have lost his eyesight," said Martinez.

 

 

 

Related Articles
Air Force Gen. Steve Nordhaus, chief, National Guard Bureau, visits the 49th Missile Defense Battalion, Alaska National Guard, on Fort Greely, Alaska, April 28, 2025. Soldiers of the 49th Missile Defense Battalion operate and secure the ground-based midcourse defense system and are an integral piece of the homeland defense mission to protect the U.S. from intercontinental ballistic missiles using ground-based interceptors.
In Alaska, Nordhaus Sees National Guardsmen Defending the Homeland, Enabling Global Power Projection
By Master Sgt. Zach Sheely | May 1, 2025
EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska – From within Alaska’s vast Interior, Alaska National Guardsmen defend the homeland from long-range missile attacks and enable global power projection.Air Force Gen. Steve Nordhaus, the chief of...

Sgt. Jessica Shields, a water purification specialist with the 935th Aviation Support Battalion, Missouri Army National Guard, checks the chlorine levels of the water meant for cooking and cleaning laundry during TRADEWINDS 25 exercise at Teteron Bay, Trinidad and Tobago, April 27, 2025.
Missouri National Guard Water Purification Team Supports TRADEWINDS 25
By Sgt. 1st Class Benjamin Crane, | May 1, 2025
TETERON BAY, Trinidad – Few resources are more critical than clean water for sustaining troops in the field. From cooking meals to maintaining hygiene, a steady supply of safe water is essential to keeping Soldiers healthy,...

Group photo of Delta Company, 341st Military Intelligence Battalion Soldiers standing in front of the Seattle / King County Clinic.
Washington Guard Soldiers Support Clinic Through Language and Compassion
By Joseph Siemandel, | May 1, 2025
SEATTLE – A group of Soldiers from the Delta Company, 341st Military Intelligence Battalion, recently volunteered at a Seattle and King County medical clinic to provide language support for visitors receiving free medical,...