|
The
things
[the
Marines]
did that
day are
the sort
of
things
you read
about in
books.”
That's
how
Capt.
Butler
remembers
the
intense
house-to-house
searches
in
Fallujah,
Iraq, on
Dec. 23,
2004.
Butler,
then a
1st
lieutenant,
and his
team
were
weaving
their
way
through
the
treacherous
streets
of
Fallujah
to root
out
insurgents
when
enemies
ambushed
his
platoon.
Butler
quickly
ran
toward
the
attack
and
found
several
Marines
taking
heavy
fire
from
insurgents
embedded
in a
house.
As he
began
extracting
the
pinned
down men
from the
house,
he
realized
that
more
Marines
were
trapped
on the
second
floor.
Once all
the men
below
were
moved to
a better
location,
Butler
gathered
a team
together
to
recover
the
other
men.
Their
best
option
was to
enter an
adjacent
house
and
storm
the
insurgents
from the
neighboring
position.
Butler
directed
Marines
laid
down
suppressive
fire as
he and
the
assault
team
quickly
darted
out onto
the
street
and ran
into the
second
house.
Insurgents
continued
to pour
a heavy
stream
of fire
upon the
men, but
Butler
pushed
on. The
assault
team ran
up the
stairs
and onto
the
rooftop.
Braving
the
enemy
fire,
Butler
stood up
and
scanned
the area
to
assess
the
situation.
Jumping
roof to
roof,
Butler
and his
team
cleared
the two
buildings
under
heavy
fire to
retrieve
the
trapped
men.
Enemy
fighters
continued
to
fight;
when
they
threw a
grenade
toward
Butler's
position,
he
shielded
the
bodies
of
fallen
Marines
instead
of
securing
himself
from the
blast.
He then
lobbied
two
grenades
into a
room
full of
insurgents,
clearing
the
area.
Despite
the
continuing
fire,
Butler
was able
to move
all the
men to
safety
on the
adjacent
rooftop.
For his
actions,
Butler
was
awarded
the
Bronze
Star
with
Combat
Distinguishing
Device
on May
19,
2006. |
