Expeditionary· West Africa NEO Operations
First Evac Wave to Conakry
This record concerns the first wave of evacuees flown to Conakry, the capital of neighboring Guinea, during one of the Marine noncombatant evacuation operations in West Africa, when those rescued from the violence were carried to safety at the staging point across the border.
As the Marines extracted endangered Americans and foreign nationals from the crisis, Conakry served as the safe haven to which the evacuees were brought, the secure destination where they could be received and processed away from the fighting. The first wave marked the opening of the evacuation flow, the initial group lifted out to safety as the operation got under way. The action reflected the mechanics of the West African evacuations, the rescue of civilians and their movement to a secure regional hub. It was one component of the larger evacuation effort, the Marines using their air and amphibious capability to carry the threatened population out of danger and into the safety of a neighboring country.
Record no. 829