Posted: 02/01/2011
Spc. Nicholas Francioso, armored crewman, assigned to 2nd Squad, 3rd Platoon, Company C., 1st Battalion, 66th Armored Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, kneels atop a cliff overlooking the Arghandab River Valley Jan. 31, to provide security for his squad as they climb up the cliff from the valley below. Francioso, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, was conducting a foot patrol with his squad to search orchards throughout the district and interact with the local population. During their foot patrols, 2nd squad must maneuver their way through the Arghandabs many obstacles, including: farmer-built mud walls, irrigation canals, densely populated orchards, foot-wide pathways through long stretches of boggy flats and even a 30-foot-tall wall they must climb during their patrol. Photo by Spc. Breanne Pye