Pittsfield soldier recuperating Paratrooper returns to U.S. for surgery after enemy missile shattered his leg

The voice of Pittsfield native and Army paratrooper Fred Allen Jr. sounded weak Monday morning and he had to stop talking when the pain of his injuries washed over him, but he said he was recovering and looking forward to coming home to Maine.

Spc. Allen, a member of the 82nd Airborne Division of the Army, was on a security detail on Halloween night in Falusha, Iraq, when an enemy missile shattered his right leg and damaged his left calf and thigh.

He underwent his seventh surgery Friday at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., – a surgery that took more than six hours and was aimed at controlling infection.

“I’m hanging in there,” Allen said softly. “I’m just trying to heal.”

Allen was buoyed Sunday by a visit from his wife, Annie, his daughter, Anastasia, 2, his father, Fred Allen Sr., and his sister and brother-in-law, Linda and Wayne Cianchette. The family members left Pittsfield Saturday for the grueling drive south, arriving in Washington at 6 a.m. Sunday.

Annie Allen, who is expecting the couple’s second child in mid-December, was overwhelmed when she saw Allen’s injuries on entering his hospital room and fainted, said Allen’s mother, Brenda Allen, who remained home in Pittsfield.

“She didn’t expect it to be as bad as it was,” said Brenda Allen. “But they checked her out fully and she is fine.” She said that because of the fear of infection, Anastasia is not allowed to touch her father, which is turning out to be difficult. “They had to go out and buy an umbrella stroller and strap her in,” said Brenda Allen.

Allen said it was wonderful to see his family on Sunday, but it will be “quite a while” before he can join them at his mother’s home in Pittsfield.

The night he was wounded remains crystal clear in his mind, said Allen, who had been in Iraq for three months.

“We were pulling security on the top of a building late at night,” he said. The rooftop was next door to the mayor of Falusha’s home, which became a target. “They opened up with RPG rounds – like rockets. We were low on the rooftop and one of the rockets went through the brick wall. It was like slow motion, watching it come right at me. I clearly remember it hitting me.”

Allen was struck in the right leg, shattering his femur, and had massive tissue damage to his left thigh and calf.

“I sort of twisted and fell,” he said. “I just reacted to survive and got the attention of my buddies who hadn’t seen me fall. My legs were like, just all over the place.”

He said there were five soldiers on the mission and all were injured. Only Allen and his sergeant suffered serious wounds, however.

Allen was airlifted to Germany, where he received initial treatment and removal of shrapnel. His right leg was reinforced with pins and rods in surgeries once he arrived in the United States.

“He won’t walk for a while,” said his mother. “But he will walk again.”

Allen’s mother said the ordeal has taken a toll on the whole family. “I have been sick inside ever since he went to Iraq. It’s been a long haul.”

His tour in Iraq was the second round of combat duty for Fred Allen, who also served in Afghanistan.

“My tour there was interesting,” he said. “It was a totally different experience. Afghanistan is a lot more like the wild, wild West. It’s not really well-organized.”

Brenda Allen said her son enlisted two days after his 1998 graduation from Maine Central Institute. “It’s been a long five years,” his mother said.

Allen called his mother and wife from Germany when he was injured. “They let him call but then I waited a week before I talked to a doctor. It has been so hard.”

She said she has been receiving telephone calls from local veterans groups who want to prepare a hero’s welcome for her son when he eventually comes home, including greeting him at Bangor International Airport.

“I don’t feel like a hero,” Allen said from his hospital bed. “I’m just fortunate. A lot of people didn’t make it home.”