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We didn't think there was any threat from landmines

Way back when VC sappers would actually plant mines in the road between convoys. The first one or two would pass safely, the next would be lax and feeling secure.
It doesn’t take long to plant one.

While I can understand a VC sapper being able to pull off something like that in a heavy vegetation environment, we were dealing with thugs in open terrain. More than likely, some Haji saw a patrol use that same turn-around and he planted the mine at night. So, after that incident, our battalion commander had us guarding that highway 24 hours per day. Unfortunately, our area of responsibility gradually expanded. And, there was not enough information flow between companies, regarding lessons learned. So, when we inherited yet another highway to secure, there were already landmines planted there. When we were relieved of our shift, another company rolled in to pull route security for 3 days, while we recovered. They decided to set up their CP in a big patch of dirt, right next to an overpass. I and my NCOs agreed that this was an awful location and we were calling over the net to anyone who would listen that they should put their CP elsewhere. For whatever reason, we were ignored. The incoming company rolled in to the patch of dirt, which my platoon refused to occupy. 30 seconds later, a HMMWV was destroyed by an antitank mine, a soldier had his feet blown off, and another soldier had his ankle shattered.