Feb 20, 2009 6:06 pm US/Eastern
Fallen Marines Honored For Saving Soldiers' Lives
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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Two young marines, Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter, of Sag Harbor, NY and fellow Marine Cpl. Jonathan Yale, of Burkeville, VA, were manning a checkpoint as a suicide bomber tried to drive by.
WBZ
An emotional ceremony Friday honored two fallen marines who sacrificed their lives to save dozens of their fellow soldiers, including one from Massachusetts.
The families of Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter and fellow Marine Cpl. Jonathan Yale were awarded the nation's second highest military honor -- the Navy Cross.
The two Marines, who had just met each other, were manning an Iraqi checkpoint last April when a suicide bomber attacked them.
Haerter and Yale stood their ground and killed the driver, but died when the bomb exploded, saving 50 Marines and Iraqi police officers asleep in their barracks.
One of the marines whose life was spared was Nicholas Xiarhos of Yarmouth.
"These two marines made a decision in six seconds to stand their ground and that saved everyone's life," said Nicholas's father, Lt. Steven Xiarhos.
On Friday, members of the so-called Fortunate Fifty gathered in Quantico, Virginia as the Navy honored the two fallen Marines.
The Fortunate Fifty say they can never thank the families of those two Marines enough for making the ultimate sacrifice.
They say they will do everything they can to make sure their courage is never forgotten.
In the final investigation, it was determined that the men never stopped firing. The two brave marines reacted just as they were trained to do.
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