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This Royal Marine threw himself on a grenade – and walked away with a nosebleed
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Lance Corporal Matthew Croucher's dad says his boy is a "lucky man." The Royal Marine was attached to 40 Commando Group in Afghanistan in 2008. On a night raid on a bomb maker's compound in Sangin, he brushed a tripwire. The grenade sprung, then hit the ground. He shouted "grenade" and "tripwire" to warn the others – then he threw himself on top of it.
"The wire was tight against my leg, just under my knee" he told the Independent. "You know instinctively what it is, what it means. Then I heard the grenade drop, right next to me."
He first dived on it face down, but realizing that wasn't going to shield much of the blast, he quickly flipped over onto his back, covering the explosive with his full rucksack. He even had time to think of what was about to happen to him.
Then it exploded.
Croucher rucksack was ripped apart, his armor and helmet riddled with shrapnel and fragmentation, and his equipment began to burn "like a flare." But that equipment is what saved his life. Doctors say he was extremely lucky to walk away with only a headache and nosebleed. The equipment cushioned him from the explosion. It took him a good 30 seconds to realize he wasn't dead.
The Royal Marine was awarded the George Cross for gallantry, an award on par with Britain's Victoria Cross, except the George Cross is awarded when the enemy is not present during the act of valor. Queen Elizabeth II presented Lance Cpl. Croucher with the medal.
He later penned a memoir about his time in Sangin, called "Bulletproof." In 2010, Britain's Ministry of Defence threatened to seize all of Croucher's earnings from the book, due to a law that prevents serving UK troops from writing books on their experiences – except Croucher is a reservist.
The Defence Ministry put Croucher under investigation, despite the Marine having received permission from his commanding officer. The MoD did an about face on the investigation within hours of journalists from the Daily Mail asking questions about it.
Follow Matthew Croucher, GC on Twitter.
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