110                                    U.S. MARINES IN THE PERSIAN GULF, I99O~199I

Group.     After handling wounded civilians and wounded EPWs during the
campaign, the group augmented the Kuwait relief effort, designated as Task
Force Freedom, through civil work projects, local police and security assistance,
and convoy support.   The force transferred military supplies that could not be
returned to the United States to the Kuwait defense forces.   The force also
cleaned more than 20,000 blankets used by EPWs and gave them to the
inhabitants of Kuwait.   Volunteers from 3d CAG even helped clean wildlife
that had been fouled by the huge oil spill perpetrated by the Iraqis.
    Approximately 60 percent of the Marine Corps' ammunition stocks worth
$200-$300 million were in theater at the conclusion of combat operations.  The
safe and orderly reembarking of these assets became a high priority of General
Boomer.    Me also placed great stress on personal safety. The force adopted the
motto "Not One More Life" to remind themselves that safety was paramount.
The main areas of concern were traffic safety, antiterrorism, material-handling
safety, and control of souvenir hunting in Kuwait.  Finally all Marines went
through a program to prepare them for their return home.     Each received a
pamphlet which gave counsel on such areas as integration back into family life,
drinking, and even sex.
    The 1st Service Support Group continued to have responsibility for the Jubayl
Vital  Area, resupply of forward     units, forward recovery operations,   and
organization for the retrograde.    The group reloaded Maritime Pre-Position
Squadrons 1 and 3.  The Direct Support Command was responsible for moving
personnel and equipment from Kuwait, the exploitation of water points northwest
of Al Jaber Airfield and Al KIlanjar, and the destruction of enemy ammunition,
bunkers, and weapons.    As part of the last task, the command also recovered
dozens of large   enemy   weapons    systems such as   artillery pieces, tanks,
antiaircraft weapons, and vehicles for intelligence, training, and historical artifact
purposes.    On  20   March,  the   Direct  Support Command    dissolved   and
reorganized as the 2d Force Service Support Group.  General Krulak moved his
command post about five kilometers southwest of Mishab on 27 March. The Al
Khanjar Combat Service Support Area was abandoned three days later, its seven
kilometer-long blastwall berms the sole monument to one of the greatest logistics
feats in the history of the Corps.  That same day, nomadic groups of Bedouin
with herds of sheep, goats, and camels reclaimed their traditional grazing areas
nearby.  With good highways available along the coast of Kuwait, there was no
longer any need of a 241-kilometer s-and and dirt main supply route.
    Before any item of equipment could be embarked, U.S. Department of
Agriculture  regulations required   that it undergo a  rigorous cleaning   and
inspection.  The side roads of the commercial port and the industrial city of
Jubayl soon became clogged with lines of vehicles and equipment waiting their
turns at wash-down points.    After completing this tedious operation, most
personnel departed on chartered airliners and transports of the Military Airlift
Command from the Jubayl Naval Air Facility.         The  1st Marine Division
command group departed Jubayl on 29 March and by the end of the month only
8,788 members of the division were still in theater.