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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=399779&in_page_id=1770&ct=5
Heroine teenage soldier to be decorated for bravery
14:30pm 9th August 2006
A heroic teenager who dodged sniper fire to save her commander's life will be the first female soldier decorated for bravery in the conflict.
Pte Michelle Norris, 19, braved a fierce gun battle to rescue the sergeant who had been shot in the mouth.
Bullets rained down around her as she leapt out of the Warrior patrol vehicle in the darkness, and climbed up the side of it to reach the injured soldier in the turret of the vehicle.
One bullet from an AK47 blasted through the medic's rucksack as she clamboured across the vehicle.
Pte Norris then helped drag the injured solider back inside the vehicle - which was still under heavy fire. The rescue took three minutes.
The vehicle was trapped in a ditch and under ambush by five insurgent teams. Pte Norris had previously only dealt with casualties in training.
Commanding officer Lt Col David Labouchere MBE is recommending the medic from Stourbridge, West Mids, for a medal for her bravery.
He said: "Pte Norris acted completely selflessly and, in the face of great danger, concentrated on her job and saved someone's life."
The teenager is nicknamed 'Chuck' by comrades in the First Battalion, Princess of Wales' Royal Regiment, after the Hollywood kung fu star.
She is in the same regiment as Pte Johnson Beharry, 26, who last year was the first living soldier since 1965 to be awarded the Victoria Cross after saving comrades in ambushes twice.
In a statement, Pte Norris said: "It (the incident) brought it home to me and I realised why I was here. It was my first casualty since training, which was pretty scary.
"On arrival at the scene, we stopped and when I heard 'dings' off the Warrior, I thought it was stones.
"All of a sudden, the driver shouted down to me that my commander had been hit.
"I didn't know where he'd been shot and how bad it was at this stage. So I jumped out the back of the Warrior, climbed up on top of the turret, looked down, and saw the extent of his injuries.
"I then heard the crack and a thump of a round going past my head. I was under fire from a sniper, which luckily just missed me.
"We managed to cross the turret and get my commander into the back, where one of the lads put a sweat rag over him. I got through and administered first aid, put a dressing on and checked his vital signs."
The convoy was ambused when looking for insurgents in June. The vehicle was trying to escape near the market square of Al Amarah when the sergent was shot.
A six-hour battle followed, with two Challenger tanks and 150 troops coming to the rescue.
The injured sargent was taken to a military hospital and is now being treated in Birmingham.
Heroine teenage soldier to be decorated for bravery
14:30pm 9th August 2006
A heroic teenager who dodged sniper fire to save her commander's life will be the first female soldier decorated for bravery in the conflict.
Pte Michelle Norris, 19, braved a fierce gun battle to rescue the sergeant who had been shot in the mouth.
Bullets rained down around her as she leapt out of the Warrior patrol vehicle in the darkness, and climbed up the side of it to reach the injured soldier in the turret of the vehicle.
One bullet from an AK47 blasted through the medic's rucksack as she clamboured across the vehicle.
Pte Norris then helped drag the injured solider back inside the vehicle - which was still under heavy fire. The rescue took three minutes.
The vehicle was trapped in a ditch and under ambush by five insurgent teams. Pte Norris had previously only dealt with casualties in training.
Commanding officer Lt Col David Labouchere MBE is recommending the medic from Stourbridge, West Mids, for a medal for her bravery.
He said: "Pte Norris acted completely selflessly and, in the face of great danger, concentrated on her job and saved someone's life."
The teenager is nicknamed 'Chuck' by comrades in the First Battalion, Princess of Wales' Royal Regiment, after the Hollywood kung fu star.
She is in the same regiment as Pte Johnson Beharry, 26, who last year was the first living soldier since 1965 to be awarded the Victoria Cross after saving comrades in ambushes twice.
In a statement, Pte Norris said: "It (the incident) brought it home to me and I realised why I was here. It was my first casualty since training, which was pretty scary.
"On arrival at the scene, we stopped and when I heard 'dings' off the Warrior, I thought it was stones.
"All of a sudden, the driver shouted down to me that my commander had been hit.
"I didn't know where he'd been shot and how bad it was at this stage. So I jumped out the back of the Warrior, climbed up on top of the turret, looked down, and saw the extent of his injuries.
"I then heard the crack and a thump of a round going past my head. I was under fire from a sniper, which luckily just missed me.
"We managed to cross the turret and get my commander into the back, where one of the lads put a sweat rag over him. I got through and administered first aid, put a dressing on and checked his vital signs."
The convoy was ambused when looking for insurgents in June. The vehicle was trying to escape near the market square of Al Amarah when the sergent was shot.
A six-hour battle followed, with two Challenger tanks and 150 troops coming to the rescue.
The injured sargent was taken to a military hospital and is now being treated in Birmingham.
