UNSUNG HEROES: Injured And Under Fire, This Marine Left No Man Behind

In January 2005, Sgt. Jarred Adams, a scout sniper with 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, braved enemy fire to retrieve the body of a fallen Marine from a burning Humvee.

According to a June 2006 Department of Defense press release, Adams’ Humvee came under attack by insurgents armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades during an ambush in Husaybah, a town of 50,000 people in Anbar province, Iraq.

In the ensuing chaos, Adams’ vehicle crashed and got stuck, and another Humvee became separated from the patrol. While his fellow Marines worked on dislodging their vehicle, Adams returned fire. With the vehicle free, Adams and his crew made their way back through intense enemy fire to rescue their fellow Marines.

Just then, an RPG struck their Humvee, killing one Marine and wounding the rest. Adams was peppered with shrapnel and burned in the blast as the vehicle caught fire. He retreated to a safe position, but then realized that the body of his fellow Marine was still inside in the burning Humvee.