bobdina
10-03-2009, 11:18 AM
Saturday, October 03, 2009
Source: The Sun Online
A Black Watch sergeant with red-hot shrapnel in his head continued directing a gun battle with the Taliban - from his stretcher. Courageous dad-of-three Eddie Nichol, 37 - pouring with blood after two comrades were killed in an ambush - refused to be evacuated as his men fought back.
He kept drilling his troops on how to combat the enemy even though he lay in agony from the deadly shrapnel embedded an inch inside his brain.
Last night the hero praised his 29-strong platoon as he said proudly: "I know the lads were able to take out some of the Taliban." His only regret was that he could not be sure they got the one who fired a rocket-propelled grenade that blew up him and his comrades while on patrol in Afghanistan's Helmand province.
Ex-plumber Eddie, who enlisted 13 years ago for "more challenges and excitement", said: "It was all surreal really. There was a massive bang when I was hit and I knew it must be serious. They put me on a stretcher.
"But I kept telling the men what to do and how to hit back - while checking they'd the right body armour and helmets on." He even ticked some off for putting themselves in too much danger. Sgt Gus Millar, 40, and Private Kevin Elliot, 24, were killed by the RPG. After a quarter of an hour Eddie was persuaded to leave his men to it.
He spent a month in hospital in Birmingham before returning to married quarters at Catterick, North Yorks. Eddie, from Dundee, joked after doctors were unable to remove the shrapnel: "They couldn't even tell how big it was. I've shrapnel all over my body now - so will probably set off airport security machines."
http://www.modoracle.com/news/Brain-Sargery_18972.html
Source: The Sun Online
A Black Watch sergeant with red-hot shrapnel in his head continued directing a gun battle with the Taliban - from his stretcher. Courageous dad-of-three Eddie Nichol, 37 - pouring with blood after two comrades were killed in an ambush - refused to be evacuated as his men fought back.
He kept drilling his troops on how to combat the enemy even though he lay in agony from the deadly shrapnel embedded an inch inside his brain.
Last night the hero praised his 29-strong platoon as he said proudly: "I know the lads were able to take out some of the Taliban." His only regret was that he could not be sure they got the one who fired a rocket-propelled grenade that blew up him and his comrades while on patrol in Afghanistan's Helmand province.
Ex-plumber Eddie, who enlisted 13 years ago for "more challenges and excitement", said: "It was all surreal really. There was a massive bang when I was hit and I knew it must be serious. They put me on a stretcher.
"But I kept telling the men what to do and how to hit back - while checking they'd the right body armour and helmets on." He even ticked some off for putting themselves in too much danger. Sgt Gus Millar, 40, and Private Kevin Elliot, 24, were killed by the RPG. After a quarter of an hour Eddie was persuaded to leave his men to it.
He spent a month in hospital in Birmingham before returning to married quarters at Catterick, North Yorks. Eddie, from Dundee, joked after doctors were unable to remove the shrapnel: "They couldn't even tell how big it was. I've shrapnel all over my body now - so will probably set off airport security machines."
http://www.modoracle.com/news/Brain-Sargery_18972.html