Base Attacked
Four hours later, with the convoy and Canadian escort now resting in the base, the American forces conducted a defensive patrol and determined that "there's no way they'll hit us tonight", referring to their belief that the 80-vehicle convoy and new troop presence would deter the insurgents.
The militants resurfaced in the hills to the west of the base, the ruins of a mud house to the north, and the poppy fields to the south, and began firing their AK-47s and RPGs. American Sergeant John T. Stone was shot in the torso, possibly by friendly fire.
The first Canadian to die in actual combat in the war, Private Robert Costall was laying down cover fire with his C-9 from beneath a small berm together with Chris Fernandez-Ledon. He was shot once through the back of the head, and once in the chest. Master Warrant Officer Ray Brodeur was shot in the leg and the midriff, and two other Canadians were also wounded, as was an American – all from a single American Humvee which fired 3–5 bursts at friendly positions before being ordered to cease fire when it was realised he was firing on friendly forces.
American B-52 bombers then dropped bombs on the militant positions, bringing their estimated dead to 30, and effectively ending the battle.
Read more about this topic: Friendly Fire Incident At Sangin
Famous quotes containing the words base and/or attacked:
“What if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord,
Or to the dreadful summit of the cliff
That beetles o’er his base into the sea,
And there assume some other horrible form
Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason,
And draw you into madness?”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“My political enemies I can freely forgive; but as for who abused me when I was serving my country in the field, and those who attacked me for serving my country—Doctor, that is a different case.”
—Andrew Jackson (1767–1845)