An Australian land mine expert survived the truck bombing at the UN offices in Baghdad - less than a year after narrowly escaping injury in the Bali nightclub blasts. Rodney Cocks, of Melbourne, was at the UN headquarters when the huge explosion rocked the building on Tuesday, the Sydney Morning Herald said. The 27-year-old was in Iraq as part of a mine clearance unit. The newspaper said that moments before the detonation, he left his desk, about 15 yards from the centre of the blast, and walked to another office to search for a phone number. "I was standing there, and the next thing I know I was covered in glass," Cocks told the Herald. "I was on the floor, bleeding. I couldn’t breathe, there was thick black smoke all around and fire." Last October, Cocks -- who was on leave from duty in East Timor with the Australian Army -- was about 40 yards from Paddy’s Bar when the first of two explosions rocked Kuta, killing 202 people. "I am sore and battered but I can’t believe my luck," he said. "Someone is looking after me. If I had been at my desk on Tuesday I would have been dead."
Rodney, let us know where you are planning your next vacation so we can stay far away. |