Live Grenade Pulled Out Of Marines Leg [Video]

When Marine Lance Corporal Winder Perez was attacked by the Taliban in January a live explosive became lodged in his leg and rather than stand by idly his medvac team jumped into action.

Realizing that the explosive device could go off at any second the Marine’s four team members had to unanimously agree to allow him onto their helicopter, something they ultimately agreed to after a bit of trepidation.

Lance Corporal Winder Perez was eventually flown 65-miles to the nearest field hospital while medics aboard the helicopter attempted to tend to his injury without detonating the explosive which would have taken all of their lives.

The explosive device was a foot-long remnant of a rocket propelled grenade and Perez was laying just “18 inches” away from 300 gallons of jet aviation fuel as he was flown for medical attention.

Once the medivac team arrived at the hospital an explosives expert worked on the injury outside of the hospital where they wrenched the RPG from his leg.

Perez is now recovering at Walter Reed medical hospital.

Not only was the life saving decision a unanimous decision based on selfless motives from his team, the rescue was caught on tape and posted on YouTube. Here is the description of the video:

In this video, filmed January 2012 in Afghanistan, Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center Nurse Lt. Cmdr. James Gennari (right) provides medical support while Explosive Ordnance Disposal Specialist Army Staff Sgt. Benjamin Summerfield (left) removes an unexploded rocket propelled grenade from the leg of Marine Cpl. Winder Perez.

[iframe src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/VSPfvi0QC-o” width=”480″ height=”360″]

Given the circumstances and potential of losing your own life could you make the same decision and allow someone with a live explosive device onto your helicopter?