by Cpl. Christopher DeHart
CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo (Army
News Service, July 20,
1999) -- After being injured during night patrols in the city of
Ferizaj, Kosovo, two soldiers were awarded Purple Hearts July 14
by Gen. Henry H. Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Staff Sgt. Roderick Morgan
and Staff Sgt. Aaron Quinn,
both squad leaders with Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion, 505th
Parachute Infantry Regiment, received the awards during a
ceremony in the city square of Ferizaj.
Morgan was on patrol
in the city during the early
morning hours of July 13 when his squad came under fire. He was
knocked unconscious when a bullet struck his Kevlar helmet.
Shrapnel from the helmet caused ligament damage to his right
hand and he was also treated for a fractured hand, according to
a physicians assistant.
Quinn was hit in the head
and stabbed while searching a
house. He was treated for a cut approximately two inches across
his right cheek and he received stitches, said 2nd Lt. Dan
Heidenreich, a physician's assistant with the 2nd Battalion of
the 505th.
Morgan said his squad members
were performing a mounted
patrol in Ferizaj when at 2:50 a.m., July 13, they were
attacked.
"I started taking fire from
my right front. After I
heard two shots, as I turned, (something) struck my kevlar. It
just snapped my head back and I heard a loud popping sound. Then
I blacked out," he said.
Morgan was given first aid
immediately by a squad medic,
Pvt. Colin Britton, and taken to the trauma team maintained in
Ferizaj by the 2nd Battalion of the 505th. He said not more than
10 minutes later other members of his unit started taking fire
about two blocks from where he was shot. This lasted for
approximately 10 to 15 seconds, he added.
Quinn said that on the night
of July 5, he was covering
an area reported to have a lot of activity not far from the city
square in Ferizaj. He was going through a dark house suspected
of having people hiding inside and was attacked while rounding a
corner.
"An individual, somebody,
punched me in my right eye and
tried to take my weapon from me. When they couldn't get my
weapon away from me, the individual tried to stick a knife in my
face. I was slashed across my right cheek and started to fall
backwards. I managed to fire off two shots as I fell but I don't
know if they hit anyone," he said.
Brig. Gen. Bantz J. Craddock,
commander, Task Force
Falcon, recognized the efforts of Morgan and Quinn in performing
their duty.
"I think they're heroes.
They are out on the beat in the
middle of it all, (putting their lives on the line). They could
have taken the easy way out and called someone else in but they
did what they were supposed to do," he said.
"When we hear a shot, we
ride to the sound of the guns.
When we go to investigate, however, sometimes we get caught in
the middle of harm's way but it's part of our job here,"
Craddock added.
Quinn said he just thanks
God he is alive but this is
part of his job. He likes what he does and what he has to do in
Kosovo, but advises anyone else out there to pay attention to
their training and keep their head up.
Morgan said it was a great
honor to receive the Purple
Heart and carry on what is a family tradition for him. He is the
fourth person in his family to receive it.
Quinn has returned to duty
since being treated. Morgan
has headed home from the forward area for orthopedic treatment
in the states, but said he is saddened at having to leave his
soldiers from Bravo Company to perform their duty without him.
(Editor's note: Cpl. Christopher DeHart is a journalist with
Task Force Falcon in Kosovo.)
