On Tuesday 28 May the sound of a mine exploding and anguished screams coming from the trees disturbed the otherwise peaceful scene on Mount Igman; this marked the beginning of a mine training exercise for the Austrian contingent of the EUFOR Multi-National Battalion (MNBN).
The Austrian EOD team quickly started to meticulously work their way towards a badly injured casualty, marking the safe routes in and out of the risk area; before delivering life-saving first aid they called for a helicopter to evacuate the casualty to hospital.
Movie style special effects make up was used on Corporal Berahriu who played the role of the casualty making it look as if his face was burned, his right arm was blown off, and his leg had been impaled by a piece of wood.
Commenting on the exercise Corporal Berahriu said:
“The make-up really added to the realism of the exercise helping ensure EUFOR is well prepared for the possibility of worst case scenarios.”
When asked about the exercise, Captain Gregor Brosch-Fohraheim, a representative of EUFOR, said:
“EUFOR is continually training so that soldiers can maintain their military skills to provide a safe and secure environment for the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina”.
Observing the exercise was Brigadier General Lászlo Szabó, EUFOR Chief of Staff and Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Sanz the MNBN Commander.
At the end of the exercise, the teams were debriefed to help further improve their performance in future military exercises.
