Marine Staff Sergeant Chad Brumpton was on his third deployment when he suffered multiple injuries, including catastrophic injuries to both of his legs, requiring their eventual amputation, in an IED blast in Al Qiam, Iraq on May 8, 2005. Before dawn on Mothers’ Day, the first day of Operation Matador, SSgt. Brumpton was the tank section leader for the Quick Reaction Force (QRF) from Camp Al Qiam.
While securing a bridge near the Syrian border, SSgt. Brumpton and his team were under attack with guns, rockets, and mortars for sveral hours before being told that a team was arriving to relieve them. As the tank he was riding in began to back-up, a command detonated IED exploded, ripping through the armor in the floorboard of the vehicle; the 500 pound bomb had detonated directly below his left foot. Knocked unconscious by the blast, Chad awoke to found that his teammates were also injured and knocked unconscious.
Help arrived in the form of other Marines in the area and a Huey helicopter that had seen the devastation from the air. During airlift evacuation to Camp Al Qiam, the helicopter was repeatedly hit by small arms fire.
Emergency surgery was performed before SSgt. Brumpton was flown to Balad, Iraq. He was next airlifted to Landstuhl, Germany. Transported to Bethesda Naval Medical Center in Maryland, SSgt. Brumpton began a series of medical transfers to stateside facilities including; Camp Pendleton, Balboa Naval Medical Center, and the Boise VA where he elected to have his legs surgically amputated after more than 2 ½ years of limb salvage procedures. Chad became an outpatient at the Boise VA in January 2008… almost 3 years after the blast that caused his catastrophic his injuries.
SSgt. Brumpton enjoys spending time with his family. Chad and his wife, Stacy have a young son and enjoy family activities involving the outdoors. He also enjoys motorcycles, camping, swimming, hunting, and fishing. Chad is a member of the American Legion and the Wounded Warrior Project and would like to work as a Veteran Peer Mentor.
SSgt. Brumpton is grateful to the donors and volunteers who will help to provide his specially adapted home from Homes for Our Troops. “Thank you for your time and effort supporting our injured veterans and their families. I am so thankful to you for helping to give me back my independence in my own home. Being able to move freely throughout my home while in my wheelchair and wheeling into my son’s bedroom without any difficulties will be a big relief for me. Thank you for caring about our military and their families…we are extremely grateful.”
Please consider making or making a donation today!
