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Drills and threw a pair of pants on and my vest, ran outside. didn't really realize how big and heavy it was until about 10, 15 minutes into the fight. >> i woke up to an explosion. i just grabbed my machine gun and i go out the door. >> so i remember getting my stuff on and turning my radio on to get a sit rep, situation report, from the guys. and you could just tell that this was something serious. >> because of the steep mountainsides, the base relied on the men in the mortar pit who had heavy weaponry to strike at targets in high-angle positions where the taliban would take cover. >> there...

Ever think, this is it, i'm not going to get out of here? >> no. it's like a fighter going into the boxing ring. you know, if you think you're going to lose before you even step into the ring, you've already lost. >> romesha decided he would run to the north side of camp with a small team and first secure the ammo supply point. meanwhile, sergeant hill would push a separate group of u.s. troops to the south side. romesha's team would gain control of the gate, save the men stuck in the humvee, and then get to the mortar pit. >> it's a pretty audacious plant, considering you had enemies strollin...

And two other men still trapped in the mortar pit. >> i had to bring them up on the radio and once again let them know we could still cover them from the building and overwatch them. but at that point i had to apologize once again. we couldn't make it. >> clint, you're so tough on yourself. you were braver that day than most of us can imagine being, and i can still hear it in your voice when you talk about talking to sergeant breeding or talking to sergeant gallegos, as if you failed that day. you didn't fail that day. >> yeah, but it's -- you know, i told them i'd be there, you know. like i s...

Surrounding them, attacking them from the high ground. three americans had already been killed in the onslaught, five more were pinned down in a humvee, and three were trapped in the mortar pit. and now the taliban fighters were inside the camp. staff sergeant clint romesha was taking stock. >> i was trying to get an assessment of who we still had left and what our ammo situation was looking like because we were getting pretty critically low. >> sergeant joshua lahart approached him with a plan. >> hart came up to me in the barracks and said he was going to get a group of guys and they were go...

That i told sergeant breeding i was going to make it to them, but i just couldn't. >> later, romesha would find out breeding and the other two many the mortar pit survived. planes and helicopters now filled the valley with a quick reaction force on the way. but the day's grim toll continued. joshua hart's body was found. stef stefan mays had been rescued from the humvee, but his wounds were too much to bear. the death toll reached eight. that night sounds surreal. most of the camp has now burned down. still enemies in the mountain, a few, taking potshots. you guys sleep in your barracks, blue ...