Tadcaster soldier survives Afghanistan incident

10:10am Thursday 20th November 2008

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AN ARMY officer from Tadcaster told today how he stepped on an explosive device in Afghanistan – and survived unscathed.

Lieutenant Warren Allison, who trained at Sandhurst in the same platoon as Prince William – said his miraculous escape happened when he was working in Helmand province as part of an operational mentoring and liaison team, offering guidance and assistance to the Afghan National Army.

The 26-year-old former Tadcaster Grammar School pupil said: “I was very excited about going; nervous, but excited. We were patrolling back from an operation and this IED (improvised explosive device) was hidden.

“As we patrolled over it, it went off under my foot, but only partially. A cloud of dust shot up and it landed at my feet. I looked around and saw all my lads open-mouthed, thinking ‘blimey, you do not get any luckier than that!’ “When you decide to join the infantry, there are a lot of boxes you want to tick. One of them is leading men against an enemy. I got to tick all the boxes within two weeks of being there!”

Lt Allison, a former coach at York City FC’s School Of Excellence, whose stint in Afghanistan happened earlier this year, said his lifestyle was “almost addictive”. He said: “My family is extremely proud of what I do.”

An Army spokesman said Lt Allison served in the 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment, which recruited its soldiers from across Yorkshire and the North East.

“C Company 2 YORKS has spent the last six weeks on duty as the Roulement Infantry Company (RIC) based on the Falkland Islands.

“The 2 YORKS soldiers had the opportunity to tour famous sites of the 1982 conflict, learning about the tactics and battles fought by their predecessors.”

He said among the ranks of C Company were Private Derek Cole from York, 25, the son of Ron and Sarah, who run The Locomotive pub, in Watson Street, Holgate.

“He is married to Joanne and has a two-year-old daughter, Holly.”

Pte Cole said regulars in the pub asked him a lot about life in the Army. “They are all friendly and interested in what I do; they are very supportive as well.”

Asked about his experience in the Falklands, he said: “It has been good, but a real challenge. The ground is hard to train on.”