European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 27, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes wednesday March 27, 1991 in the Gulf. Iid Rawlin texans ride Herd on fires by John Pomfret the associated press greater Burgan Oil Field Kuwait the wind Ripples Over a deathly Lake of crude like stationary tornadoes from hell scores of Oil fires Roar red Black and scaring. A a a. An american Oil firefighter places another Pinch of tobacco Between his Cheek and gum and spits a we kill Oil Wells a drawls Mike petrus a 33-Ycar-old texan. A i guess that makes us  petrus and his colleagues have got a lot of killing to do. Fleeing iraqi troops ignited about 600 Oil Wells in Kuwait that Burn about 6 million barrels of Oil daily a crude Worth More than $100 million. On monday petrus and four other specialists with boots and Coots co. Of Houston turned off a Well that had spewed crude Over an area the size of a baseball Diamond. The action demanding lots of technique but Only a few turns of a wrench was one of the first moves in the biggest Job these men have Ever tackled. A firefighters expect it will he at least two years before plumes of smoke cease to Blacken Kuwait s skies turn-., my Day into night and filling the air with poisonous hydrocarbons. In some places the Oil lies almost a foot thick. In others Tufts of desert Brush poke blackened Branch tips through the goo. Barbed wire hidden under the crude in several places is a grim reminder of War. Heading the Crew is boots Hansen a Stocky White haired is year old known As the a Little general a to his men. The Tough talking texan does t suffer fools gladly and supervises operations closely even Down to put Ting a a boots and Coots decal on the door of a Chevy. Van by a v. A a. A a Wanna go for a ride fellas and watch us get dirty a Arisen said cracking a rare wry smile As the Day began. He and his men Wear Bright White to fight Oil fires. By the end of the Day they Are smeared Black. Other companies such As red Adair steam Wear red. Joe Bowdens wild Well control inc. Of Spring Texas wears yellow. A some people May say we look kind of funny but if there san Oil fire in the neighbourhood i Don t think people would care what you look like As Long As you put it out Quot Bowden said. V Bowdens business card tells it All. On one Side wild Well control inc. Is spelled out in letters that belong on the Side of a Western Saloon. On the other an Oil Well fire in technicolor assaults the eyes. Second in command is Ace Abner 62, of Odessa Texas wiry and a mean As a Snake a a As petrus describes w v boots Hansen fright of boots and Coots co. Oversees efforts to shut off a kuwaiti Well spewing Oil and Gas monday. Him. A role Ace could whip four of you any of you a petrus said. A i know i  mess with  a then there a Joe Carpenter a 54-year-old from Houston. A a a a a a he a a welding fool a Abner said. It took Carpenter just 300 hours to build the firms Tush hog a 70-foot-Lorig horizontal Crane that firefighters use to place explosives or capping devices on the Well. A. Quot a  a. A rounding out the Crew Are petrus and Larry Nixon a 33-year-old from Spring. Both men sport mustaches Chew tobacco and Call each other a pc Uzi in a deep Texas  Haven to had much Contact with Arab society although several have worked in the Region before. The Only thing that seems to rub them the wrong Way is bureaucratic wrangling with the government. The latest one involves saudi Arabia. Saudi customs authorities apparently have held up crucial firefighting equipment at their Border for several Days. The firefighting team has decided to ship the equipment from other persian Gulf states and to Fly As much in As possible to avoid the slow land route. Quot they just do things differently out Here a Abner said. A they live upside  fanfare greets 2 British ships Portsmouth England apr tears cheers and Champagne greeted two Royal Navy ships that returned to their Home ports monday from duty in the persian Gulf. In Portsmouth a huge crowd gave an emotional Welcome to the 300-Strong Crew of the destroyer Gloucester. In Plymouth a Devonport Section the frigate London was greeted by music from a Royal Marine band a Salute from a Squadron of Raf jaguars flying past and the cheers of several Hundred relatives. The London the Royal Navy flagship in the Gulf during the War was in the thick of the action in the Northern Gulf alongside the Cruiser Princeton and the amphibious assault ship Tripoli the two . Ships which were struck by mines. The Gloucester used its sea Dart missile system to shoot Down an iraqi silkworm missile that had been fired at the . Battleship Missouri. Among those in the quayside to Welcome Home the Gloucester was the family of 17-year-old Steve Bun Bury who spotted the iraqi missile. A i feel like its my wedding Day a said his Mother Jaquie Bunbury. San Francisco affirms Sanctuary offer san Francisco a san Francisco a Board of supervisors voted to stand by its offer of Sanctuary to War. Resisters. The 7-4 vote monday came after some had accused the City of hypocrisy for trying at the same time to organize a Welcome Home Parade for . Troops. Despite a plea from mayor Art Agnos to repeal the offer of Sanctuary the Board endorsed d Resolution that affirms it and also Calls on the City to Honor veterans by working to provide Job education and health care opportunities. A was far As the Parade it. Is obvious we will have one a said the resolutions sponsor supervisor Harry Britt a but i am not hearing that the people want the City to organize  Britt a Resolution was passed Over two others. One called for rescinding Sanctuary the other said Sanctuary Yas no longer needed now that the War has ended and urged the mayor to plan a a Welcome Home for the troops. During two hours of Public debate on the Resolution former police chief Frank Jordan said san Francisco became the a laughingstock of the nation Quot earlier this year when it voted for Sanctuary and then approved a Parade. ,. Jordan a candidate for mayor said the Board and the mayor a a embarrassed the City by sending a double message. The Board in january declared san Francisco a Sanctuary for members of the military opposed to the persian Gulf War. The action was mostly symbolic but it took added significance when big Antiwar protests erupted in the City. A month after approving the Sanctuary measure supervisors proposed a Parade for the victorious troops. Speakers favouring repeal of the Sanctuary ordinance included representatives of the chamber of Commerce which feared tourism would suffer because of a perceived Lack of patriotism on san Francisco s part. Relief group in Jordan with Aid for Iraq Detroit apr a Detroit based delegation representing thousands of iraqi americans was in Amman Jordan with medical supplies Relief Money and More than 3,000 letters from iraqis living abroad. On saturday the three member iraqi american group presented checks totalling $75,000 to the jordanian red Crescent a Branch of the International committee of the red Cross. A the Money is probably just a Token Quot said Paul Vincent a Southfield attorney and president of victims of War a a we re really hoping to raise Public consciousness about what has happened in  an additional $50,000 donated through chaldean churches in Detroit was delivered sunday and the group All iraqi born . Residents left for Iraq to deliver More supplies Money and letters. Most Detroit area iraqis Are chaldean a Christian minority in Iraq. A we wanted to make sure we complied with 100 percent of the . Regulations a said Sam Yono chairman of the chaldean federation of America. The delegation had to persuade the iraqi ambassador to Jordan to provide special passes since the state department prohibits using american passports to travel to Iraq. Relief workers who have visited Iraq recently say there is a Lack of electricity and severe shortages of Medicine have resulted in contaminated water stagnant sewage and a crippled health care system. Even though Medicine and medical supplies were exempted from . Sanctions against Iraq the . Government strictly regulated such shipments