A few minutes later, he was there in the cold with the sentries, arms at the ready, trying to figure out what the noises they were hearing intermittently meant. It seemed as if North Korean infiltrators were slowly creeping through the brush on the nearby hills and ravines to get into position for an attack. Yet searchlights directed at the menacing noises revealed nothing amiss, with neither troops nor animals nor civilians visible.
Should they nevertheless put the base on alert? Or should they take no chances and pepper the hillsides with gunfire? Or should they at least send up flares to get a comprehensive view of the scene? Or were they letting their imaginations run away with them?
Fortunately, my friend the young lieutenant called for a veteran NCO, who quickly came to the gate. After a moment of listening, the NCO declared that they were in no danger. It was just a bone-chilling cold front slowly moving in from Siberia. The noises they were hearing was the vegetation freezing as the cold air hit. A few minutes later, the front arrived as if the door to a deep freeze had opened and theyy had been shoved inside.
Great story! I think they still should’ve popped a flare: better safe than sorry.