A San Diego police sergeant was awarded the Purple Heart this week for combat wounds he suffered while serving with the U.S. Marine Corps during the Iraq War.
Francisco Roman Jr., a former member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, received the commendation Tuesday at Camp Pendleton in honor of his actions during the First Battle of Fallujah.
Roman was wounded by an improvised explosive device while leading Marines in a quick-reaction force to support another squad during a firefight in Al Anbar Province in the spring of 2005.
“We were patrolling back to our base and I noticed that the streets were empty,” Roman told the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service. “A mosque started playing the call to prayer. I looked back and told my squad mate that it felt like we were in a movie and the next thing I saw was a bright orange flash.”
Roman awoke minutes later, took cover and, though wounded, began regrouping his unit.
“I found my squad and asked them who got hit, and they told me that I got hit,” he said. “I didn’t know I got hit.”