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Chief's brother is in the thick of it By SARAH LEMON Although Doug Mellgren has traveled to 44 countries writing stories for the Associated Press, Medford police Chief Eric Mellgren said he has never felt so anxious since his brother arrived in Afghanistan to cover the war. "I dwell on it constantly; I think of him all the time," Mellgren said. Although Mellgren said he believes his brother will be safe, the whole family has been on "pins and needles" since Doug Mellgren volunteered for the assignment. The brothers have made a deal to always communicate about where they are. In a family emergency, foreign correspondents can be reached through the AP. The 52-year-old police chief has closely followed his 47-year-old brother's career since he started covering combat issues while stationed in the Baltic states during the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. Doug Mellgren filed the first AP dateline from Riga, Latvia, since before World War II. The story has become a piece of family history, Eric Mellgren said. Since then, Doug Mellgren has manned AP bureaus in Albania, Kenya and a host of other countries when he isn't home in Oslo, Norway, where he's lived for the past 15 years. The fact that he speaks a few other languages and also is a skilled photographer has furthered his journalistic endeavors, Chief Mellgren said. All the excitement comes with risks and a few close calls. Doug Mellgren was arrested by black-bereted Soviet troops in 1991 and left Kenya three days before three of his AP colleagues were slain. One of the reporter's close friends was killed recently in Spain, Chief Mellgren said. But Doug Mellgren always wanted to be a reporter - ever since he was 8 years old and walked around sporting an old-fashioned hat with a press pass stuck in the hat band, his brother said. At University of Wyoming, the younger Mellgren studied journalism and photography as well as fulfilling his love for "harsh country," Chief Mellgren said. In the deserts of Afghanistan, Doug Mellgren tags along with U.S. Marine expeditionary units. Because the reporter was on the move, he couldn't be reached. He wears "cammies" (camouflage clothing), a vest and a helmet to blend in. But the police chief said he knows the Eagle Scout with decades of experience abroad can never be 100 percent safe. "War's a mess," Mellgren said. "If something falls out of the sky and hits 20 people, it could hit him, too, because he's where all the action is." Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.