Navy nurse removes live RPG round from a Marines leg; receives bronze star.

[Sturg1647545502]

Apparently this was all over cable news but its the first I've heard of it. Pretty crazy.

 

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-us-navy-nurse-from-great-lakes-to-receive-bronze-star-20120809,0,5797122.story

 

A nurse at Lovell Federal Health Care Center will receive the Bronze Star today for the heroism he displayed when he removed a live rocket-propelled grenade from a Marine’s leg in Afghanistanearlier this year.

 

Lt. Cmdr. James Gennari, a 52-year-old Navy trauma nurse, later watched as other service members detonated the device in a safe spot. The blast could have demolished a car, he said.

 

Gennari, who is stationed at the military hospital at Naval Station Great Lakes near North Chicago, served in Afghanistan from August 2011 until this March. Gennari, whose permanent home is in East Chicago, Ind., treated the wounded at Forward Operating Base Edinburgh in Helmand Province.

 

On Jan. 12, Gennari received word that an incoming helicopter carried a Marine with a live rocket-propelled grenade, fired by an enemy combatant, lodged in his leg, he said. The Marine, Cpl. Winder Perez, was taken to a safe area outside the hospital. The surgeon on hand told Gennari he didn’t have to risk his life by treating the man.

 

“I said ‘I’m a nurse. That’s my job. I’m going,’” said Gennari, who was aided in the procedure by Army Staff Sgt. Ben Summerfield.

[Not Brian]

That's awesome.

 

I hope my two old commanders watched this, they got bronze stars for sitting in their air-conditioned offices for a year.

[Scotty2Hotty]

That's awesome.

 

I hope my two old commanders watched this, they got bronze stars for sitting in their air-conditioned offices for a year.

 

Different when you get a "V" device attached to it. Our higher ups got Bronze Stars too, when some of my guys got ARCOM's with a "V" device.

 

God Bless the hospital/medic folk and the dustoff pilots. They're some true heroes when you need them. I'll never forget watching a female dustoff pilot setting her Blackhawk down, while we were taking contact, in between 2 power lines. She got that big green bitch down on a narrow 2-lane road so we could load up the wounded. Those folks deserve just as much credit as any ground pounder.

[Otis Nice]

Heard about that. Grandpa was an E9 USAF EOD in Viet Nam. When asked if he ever had to do anything simlar he was just silent.

 

God Bless ALL of our service men and women.

[Mojoe]

Bronze star is losing its. Value. I was put in for one and it was stupid. If its not a V I'm good with an ARCOM. And I did nothing V worthy. Too many D bags running around with a Bronze Star like they wore cape and had a S on their chest when all they did was their job or less.

 

I read an atical a last year about Marine scout sniper who received the bronze star with valor. From his vantage point, he saw roughly 100 enemy surrounding a squad size element in a small town. The fire fight was already on. With his well place shots, he evened the odds and the enemy eventually withdrew. So the math on that is about 13 Vs 100. Thant the 100 quit. Fuck ya! That man gets a medal.

[Murse]

Being an Air Force nurse myself, I've heard stories like this. Never as crazy as an rpg tho! I can honestly tell you I would have done the same thing. Fuck that surgeon! He must have been civilian. If not he should get his rank stripped.

[kirks5oh]

the guy i trained with is air force--spent 6 months in afghan. when he came back to the states i met him in chicago and hung out. he is changed forever. much of the shit he saw/dealt with cannot be erased from his mind. definitely had a fair amout of ptsd. crazy shit. being completely honest, i can't guarantee i would want to remove the device if i was put in the same situation. just being honest.

[Draco-REX]

I would have given the chopper pilot a medal too. He had to ride in a washing machine with the guy and that RPG.

[timmy43016]

Bronze star is losing its. Value. I was put in for one and it was stupid. If its not a V I'm good with an ARCOM. And I did nothing V worthy. Too many D bags running around with a Bronze Star like they wore cape and had a S on their chest when all they did was their job or less.

 

I read an atical a last year about Marine scout sniper who received the bronze star with valor. From his vantage point, he saw roughly 100 enemy surrounding a squad size element in a small town. The fire fight was already on. With his well place shots, he evened the odds and the enemy eventually withdrew. So the math on that is about 13 Vs 100. Thant the 100 quit. Fuck ya! That man gets a medal.

 

Thats awesome. Marines dont usually hand these out will nilly. We had an instance where in Iraq my platoon had a 500 pound bomb dropped "danger close" while chasing insurgents. The platoon was either in the wrong place at the wrong time or the pilots missed their mark (we never did find out what happened). We did not have any casualties, but the concussion and the shock wave picked up the eintire platoon and sent them flying. One of our snipers described it as a giant wall of dirt coming at him like a freight train that he couldnt get out of the way in time, hitting him square in the face. He said he woke up a minute later not being able to hear anything or knew who he was for a moment. His rifle was permantly destroyed (barrell bent and so much dirt inside the weapon that it damaged internals pretty bad, most weapons were beyond repair). Our corpsman picked up most of the pieces, patched everyone up, and after 1.5 hours laying in ditches, most had stopped bleeding and could hear again.

 

Long story short things like this happen daily in armed forces. Our platoon never reported the incident because they would have been up for medals/hearts etc...no one wanted them or to be recognized for getting one this way. After reading what I wrote, I cant find the relevance other than it was a good story. As for the poster about his g-pa and being EOD, some stories you just cant share. We have them too. I have a couple buddies who, when asked, will start to shake just thinking about it let alone try and talk. Sad...all I can do is be ready at 2 am with beer should they find themselves in dire straights.

[AC66Bronco]

“That’s my job. I’m going,’”

 

If more ppl just acted like this the world would be a better place.

 

Mad respect for this guy.

[Otis Nice]

As for the poster about his g-pa and being EOD, some stories you just cant share. We have them too. I have a couple buddies who, when asked, will start to shake just thinking about it let alone try and talk. Sad...all I can do is be ready at 2 am with beer should they find themselves in dire straights.

 

Agreed and understood. He never talked much about it and never asked for his medals. The ones he did have he had let my uncle, who died in 7 (hit head on by a drunk driver) hold them. He was destined to get married soon. When he passed he told his fiance to keep them and she still has them to this day. She has offered to return them to the family though.

 

Walking in his house you'd know he was a pastor for 24 years (after his military service) but hardly anything in his house resembled his incredible service save this picture, purchased by his daughter, which hung in his family room.

 

http://vietnamreflections.com/themed/new/img/img1.jpg

 

After he passed we found multiple newspaper clippings that grandma (passed in 1999) held onto. One had a picture and article where he was waist deep in a muddy hole and couldn't see the bottom searching for live munitions with a breaker bar, the other was where a plane went down and as an E9 he told his guys to get back while he and an E7 ran into the burning plane and each carried 4 ~300+ pound bombs (I believe that was the weight) off by themselves so they wouldn't asplode.

 

The man is a true American hero who never asked for acclimations and is laid to rest in a humble cemetary in Adams County where most will never know all he gave for his country.

[timmy43016]

Agreed and understood. He never talked much about it and never asked for his medals. The ones he did have he had let my uncle, who died in 7 (hit head on by a drunk driver) hold them. He was destined to get married soon. When he passed he told his fiance to keep them and she still has them to this day. She has offered to return them to the family though.

 

Walking in his house you'd know he was a pastor for 24 years (after his military service) but hardly anything in his house resembled his incredible service save this picture, purchased by his daughter, which hung in his family room.

 

http://vietnamreflections.com/themed/new/img/img1.jpg

 

After he passed we found multiple newspaper clippings that grandma (passed in 1999) held onto. One had a picture and article where he was waist deep in a muddy hole and couldn't see the bottom searching for live munitions with a breaker bar, the other was where a plane went down and as an E9 he told his guys to get back while he and an E7 ran into the burning plane and each carried 4 ~300+ pound bombs (I believe that was the weight) off by themselves so they wouldn't asplode.

 

The man is a true American hero who never asked for acclimations and is laid to rest in a humble cemetary in Adams County where most will never know all he gave for his country.

 

Cool stories, I love to hear these kinds (makes me grateful). True heroes rarely get notice or do so post humorous (not in all cases). Technology makes things a lot easier. I have a lot of respect for those who had to do it the manual way. That is truely hardcore. Like a lot of SOF communities would say "if you knew what we did then we didnt do our jobs". Be proud to have a true heroes blood pumping through your veins.

[Otis Nice]

Cool stories, I love to hear these kinds (makes me grateful). True heroes rarely get notice or do so post humorous (not in all cases). Technology makes things a lot easier. I have a lot of respect for those who had to do it the manual way. That is truely hardcore. Like a lot of SOF communities would say "if you knew what we did then we didnt do our jobs". Be proud to have a true heroes blood pumping through your veins.

 

I am. Believe me, I am.