Page 119 - Mercian Eagle 2013

Conspicuous Gallantry Cross (CGC)
Cpl Josh Edward Hayden GRIFFITHS
As soldiers at Patrol Base Folad chatted over their evening meal on March 25th, the calm was suddenly and brutally shattered when half a tonne of explosives tore through the outer wall.
Through the debris, dust and deafening noise, dazed, and many of them wounded, the troops fought to regain their bearings. A vehicle-borne bomb had ripped a 40-metre hole in the perimeter wall, allowing insurgents to pour into the patrol base. Among those in the cookhouse which was utterly destroyed by
the blast was Corporal Josh Griffiths. One of fifteen casualties, of whom one later died, he could have remained where he was to receive treatment.
Cpl Josh Edward Hayden GRIFFITHS
They were also firing rocket propelled grenades. All I could think was ‘I have to stop them or they’ll kill me and my mates,” said Josh. For some time a vicious fire fight raged at a range of just 25 metres. Despite the debilitating effects of his injuries, former South Wirral High School pupil Josh placed himself and another soldier between the casualties and the insurgents. Under such inspirational leadership and courage,
his comrades began launching grenades back at
the insurgents. His aggressive response halted the insurgents at the northern wall of the base and allowed the other injured troops to be extracted. As uninjured soldiers began to arrive and join the fray, Josh had
the option to step back and receive treatment for his significant wounds
In an act of exceptional bravery, Josh, of 1st
Battalion The Mercian Regiment’s C Company, took
the fight right back to the enemy. As the inside of the base came under a torrent of machine gun fire and rocket-propelled grenades, two of which obliterated the operations room, the 24-year-old, from Eastham, The Wirral, dragged himself free from the chaos
of the collapsed cookhouse He said: “It was dark and I felt my head. I thought I had been wounded as it felt like blood, but then I realised it was gravy. My back felt a bit weird and I later found out
I had fractured the 4th vertebrae. “My first instinct was to see who was hurt and help. One of the lads was shouting that another was badly injured. We had to crawl through the debris in the dark to get him out.” That achieved, outside the collapsed cookhouse, he was immediately confronted with a group of insurgents inside the patrol base, less than 50 metres from him and the other casualties.
Disorientated, dressed in combat shirt and fatigues without protective equipment, and armed only with a light machine gun
he managed to grab in the maelstrom, he faced down the enemy fighters as they hurled grenades and let rip with automatic weapons
“The adrenalin was racing. As soon as I was out in the open air, bullets where whizzing past my head, missing me by millimetres.
Queen’s Gallantry Medal (QGM)
Rifleman Benjamin John TAYLOR
Rfn Taylor, was a top cover gunner in a Mastiff armoured vehicle, which was covertly inserting a
sniper team into an Afghan national army checkpoint
in Helmand province when it rolled down a three-metre high bank into the canal, coming to rest on its roof, half submerged in water. He was thrown from the hatch and trapped between the armour on the vehicle and its body, with the only way to escape to take off his body armour. As the rest of his crew were trapped inside, he was swept away by the current and - despite suffering a back injury - swam and waded back to the vehicle to help his colleagues.
Instead, with utter disregard for his own safety, he and the Sergeant Major led a small team as they charged forward and defeated the insurgents. Only once the base was secure did Josh agree to be treated and was later evacuated back to the UK due to the seriousness of his injuries.
For his extraordinary bravery, he has been awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross, the second highest level of honour for acts during active operations against the enemy. He added “I was devastated we had lost a soldier. It is an amazing honour to receive the award and I am very proud but I’d much rather it hadn’t happened and he was still with us.”
His citation states: “If it were not for the exceptionally brave and selfless actions and the inspirational leadership and example of this very junior Corporal, a dangerous situation could have become catastrophic. Griffiths’ actions certainly saved the lives of his wounded comrades and contributed significantly to the successful defence of the base”
“The turret was underwater, submerged, as the
vehicle was upside down. It was half full of water and
was filling up, so I was trying to get the lads out. I
was pretty much by myself. I knew I had to help them but I had no protection or anything, no weapon, no body armour. I went back in through the turret and got a pistol, then came back through. The only way out for them was the same way, but they were getting stuck by their body armour so they had to take it off and one by one come out through the turret.”
Rfn Taylor repeatedly dived down to help guide the men out through the tunnel underwater and to the surface in a rescue effort that took about 40 minutes.
Despite being the youngest and least experienced person there, he found himself taking control of the situation .
“I’m not a leading man, I’m just one of the boys, but it was just natural instinct to help get them out,” he said.
Rfn Taylor injured his lower back in the incident and had to be flown home early.
He said: “I didn’t feel it myself there and then, but when I got back to my patrol base it was giving me really bad pain. I had to lie down for periods of time. It felt like putting a metal bar around my back.”
RFN Benjamin John TAYLOR
His citation hails his “immense physical courage and determination ... risking his own life to rescue his colleagues”.
But the 21-year-old, who said he was still in shock about his award, insisted: “We did it as a team, not just me. I’m glad I have done something but it was basically just teamwork, I’m just glad they got out.”
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
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