MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- Sgt. Jullian R. Brown, a marksmanship coach with the Carlos Hathcock Range Complex was awarded a Navy and Marine Corps Medal at the range aboard Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Sept. 29, for actions while deployed to Husaybah, Iraq, in Nov. 2005.
What started off as a day delivering ammunition to the Marines and sailors of Battalion Landing Team 2/1, 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit and turned into a life-saving rescue mission.
“I’m glad the other Marines who were with me are receiving the same recognition for what we did that day,” said Brown.
Serving as an ammunition technician and gunner, Brown and the Marines he was with, received word of Iraqi civilians trapped underneath a collapsed building.
“We were re-supplying all five of our companies,” said Brown. “It seemed just like one of those days where it was possible something big could happen, but it changed when we got the call.”
After the team rushed to the site, Brown and two other Marines stripped their gear, making themselves smaller to fit through the only hole leading inside.
“I didn’t think about anything except that I just wanted to get out all the people I could,” said Brown. “First we pulled out an older man and when we heard there was another person still inside we pulled out the last survivor – a little girl.”
The three Marines worked in the cramped area without light or much ventilation for more than 20 minutes.
With each move and each piece of rubble they shifted, the three Marines risked having the building’s unstable debris fall on top of them.
After carrying the wounded civilians out of the structure, Brown went to work right away helping care for the wounded and assisting with the medical evacuation. His efforts saved the lives of Iraqi civilians.
The Marines at the range complex congratulated Brown for his heroic actions that November day.
“It’s an extremely impressive achievement,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Eric G. Brayman, the range complex officer. “I’m humbled to know the guy who could do something like that. It takes years to be awarded something like this.”
Brown intends to serve at the range for the next few years.