John Steele left his family and home at the tender age of 16 to join the Royal Navy. In a select branch of only 200 men he subsequently qualified as the youngest Mine Clearance Diver at that time. He then moved on to a life as an oilfield commercial diver and for 22 years worked in the unforgiving depths of the North Sea and the Persian Gulf.
In 2004 a new industry was opening up and following an intense period of re-education he secured a job with one of the largest private security companies working with the reconstruction of Iraq. This involved explosive and gunshot filled daily runs into the heart of the Mosul and Baghdad red zones at the height of the post war troubles.
Security tasks followed in Africa involving Anti-Piracy duties aboard ships off the dangerous Somali coastline. An advisory position was then offered in the Swamp Area around Brass Island in Bayelsa State working with the Nigerian military’s Joint Task Force..
Finally, working as a gold prospector 230 km above the Arctic Circle in a beautiful wild barren part of Finland on his own gold claim aptly named Kaikki Peliin or in English, ‘ALL IN’.
This is a story of humour in adversity, of highs and lows and the need to push on when all around is crumbling… Above all, it is about operating in completely different fields with one constant – any error of judgement could be the last. This book reflects the riveting, truthful and sometimes hilarious collection of true stories from a man who continues to choose adventure in life over the mundane.
As I U-turned, my left side wheels slipped off the tarmac into the gooey mud and the vehicle hesitated. I slipped into four-wheel drive and gassed it. My vehicle took the brunt of incoming belt-fed PKM light machine gun and AK47 fire from insurgents hidden in the fruit and veg stands and the surrounding sand berms. The rounds impacting the vehicle’s armour sounded like sledgehammers and eventually, at least one found a weak spot and entered the engine bay. I could feel the engine dying as I desperately tried to move away from the junction. A few seconds later, I ended up facing away from the contact point with a dead engine stuck in first gear, holding the key down and chugging up the road with flat tyres. I was driving on the batteries and starter motor!
We came to a grinding halt in the middle of the kill zone and the world erupted around us.
Sobre el autor
John Steele was born near Carlisle in the North of England. He was a strong swimmer as a child and subsequently became one of only 200 serving Royal Naval Mine Clearance Divers at 17 years old.
Following his time in the Navy he went on to spend 22 years as a commercial diver offshore.
In 2004 he enrolled on various courses and became a private military contractor in Iraq. In 2007 he left and set up his own fishing charter business for one year. This would have continued however the Somalian anti-piracy industry was in its infancy but growing quickly. A few more courses were added and it was back to sea as a security operator…
A chance offer of a job in Nigeria as a security advisor was accepted in 2012 where John works to this day.
In his time off he has a gold mining operation to run 230km above the Arctic Circle in Northern Finland.
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