An Afghan War hero who took on the enemy with a broken back and shrapnel lodged in his face has been honoured.
Corporal Josh Griffiths was eating in a cookhouse at Camp Folad, Helmand Province when a pick-up truck carrying a half-a-ton of explosives smashed into the perimeter wall and detonated. Despite being injured in the blast, the soldier dragged himself off the ground and grabbed a machine gun to engage a party of insurgents who had burst through the 130ft gap created by the explosion.
The enemy aimed rocket-propelled grenades at him and showered him with automatic fire during the prolonged close-quarters firefight in 2013. At one stage, Cpl Griffiths was just 80ft from the insurgents and had they got past him 15 wounded comrades would have been at their mercy.
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Corporal Griffiths' bravery allowed them to be evacuated and all but one of them survived the attack. Cpl Griffiths, who was not wearing any protective equipment, did not stop until the insurgents were driven from the base. He had been running on adrenaline but was so badly hurt he had to be sent home to Britain for hospital treatment.
The 33 year old, from Eastham, was presented with the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross (CGC) by Prince Charles in 2014, joining an exclusive group of military personnel to have been awarded the CGC. Now a room has been named after the Afghan war hero at a new veterans club in the Wirral.
He opened the room on Saturday. Josh told the ECHO: “I’m very honoured to [open the club]. It took me back when Simon Parker (the manager) asked me to do it.
"Some people want to be footballers when they were younger, I wanted to be in the army. I would 100% recommend any young person to join the army now. When I joined I was a young, shy and not very confident. Getting through it gave me leadership skills.”
It’s been six months since Josh was in the military but now he has little involvement with the armed forces. He told the ECHO he has put that period of his life behind him and only goes to remembrance services now.
According to Forces War Records, since the CGCs creation in 1993, only been 53 have been awarded. The ribbon is the second most prestigious medal in the British Armed Forces. It can also be awarded posthumously.
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