PROUD Minehead nurse has returned home after three months braving the volatile battlefields and stifling humidity of Afghanistan as a TA nursing officer.
Major Elaine Smith was deployed to Camp Bastion in Helmand Province in January, along with fellow TAs from B Squadron 243 based in Exeter.
Elaine, from Cannington, visited war-torn Iraq with the TA in 2003 but she described her time in Afghanistan as much more of a challenge.
She said: "Afghanistan was definitely more interesting and challenging. We were under NATO rule and the soldiers felt their time there was far more useful than it was in Iraq."
Less than a month ago, the County Gazette reported on the deaths of two Royal Marines based at Norton Manor Camp, near Taunton, following a tour of Helmand province.
Camp Bastion is the only camp yet to be attacked during the Western occupation since 2001 but Elaine said she always felt safe despite the many loud explosions nearby.
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She said: "The new £11 million hospital I worked in was near a weapons range, so I did get a bit shaky hearing loud bangs.
"It was brilliant working in the hospital. It was clean and its upkeep was impeccable.
"At first it was difficult to get used to the habits of the Afghan patients but, with the help of the brilliant team of interpreters, they were a pleasure to work with."
Elaine now has a month off work and plans to spend time with her son, who is in Southampton studying to become an engineering officer for the Royal Navy.
She has another 18 months to prepare for her next deployment but remains upbeat about the future.
She added: "I have been a member of the TA for 23 years and I have experienced things and been to places I would never have dreamed of.
"I am glad to be home and I am very proud of what I have achieved in Afghanistan."
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