IT'S not everyday that someone is described as a hero - but for one Bordon local, that term is a truly fitting description. Corporal Brian Wood aged 24, is part of the Princess of Wales' Royal Regiment that won 29 honours for bravery during its battles in Iraq. It was announced at his German barracks in Paderborn on Friday, March 19, that the then Lance Corporal Wood would receive a Military Cross and promotion, for his part in the most celebrated quintet of the regiment that claimed the military's top honours. "When we got blown up in Iraq, my tank driver Private Johnson Beharry - who got the Victoria Cross - saved our lives by driving out of the killing area. When he got hit later in battle I pulled him out of the driver's seat and administered first aid to his face - basically paying back the respect for him saving my life - by helping him. "The main reason I won the Military Cross was for fixing bayonets and storming three trenches in Iraq. On May 14, 2003, we came under a heavy ambush and I was given the order to dismount. As I did, I spotted the enemy trenches. So, then, we conducted a full frontal assault on all three of them." explained Corporal Wood. Corporal Wood sustained shrapnel wounds to his arm, lacerations and burns to his face which hospitalised him for two weeks before he returned to the front line to orchestrate the assault. At a time when many people would have crumbled under the pressure Lance Corporal Wood excelled, putting other people's safety ahead of his own. "You don't have time to be scared, there is a little bit of panic at first, but because I was the commander and one of the lads had suffered serious facial injuries, and others had shrapnel wounds to their legs, I had to concentrate on getting them sorted out before thinking of myself. "Every single day we were out in Iraq we were getting bombed or under fire from the the enemy, so there was no real opportunity to reflect on what was happening or to become scared," Corporal Wood said. There is without doubt a heavy price to pay with any war. Although Corporal Wood led the Army's first fixed-bayonet charge against entrenched enemy positions since the Falklands, without losing any of his team, others were not so lucky. "We lost two soldiers in the battalion and it is not nice at all, but you have to cope with it. I had to bury them in London and it is horrible being there - especially going through what we went through together, and them paying the price for it," explained Corporal Wood. It is a struggle for anyone moving away from their family without the added uncertainty of whether they will return safely. Corporal Wood left his wife and a newborn son at home in Bordon which was a real wrench because of the amount of time that the family were to be apart, he said: "When I first went over he (his son) was only four weeks old. Going over there was really hard for me because he was so tiny when I left, and when I came back he was five months old. So, I missed four months of his life straightaway. Yet because we were under so much pressure in Iraq, it took my mind off of the things at home that I was missing." When Corporal Wood returned from battle he was celebrated as a hero not only by his colleagues, but his friends and family as well. The former Mill Chase and Bordon Infant School pupil comes from a military-based background. "My dad was in the Army for 21 years and my brother is currently serving in the Royal Scot's. My father-in-law was in the Reme for 26 years, and two of his sons are currently serving, one in the REME and the other in the Paras. The family is very military-orientated, and they have hailed me as a hero," Corporal Wood said proudly. He further added: "I have had lots of local people phoning up to congratulate me on getting the award. It's nice to be recognised in Bordon where I am from, but it is also good for Bordon to be highlighted in a positive way." Corporal Wood will be presented with the accolade by the Queen at Buckingham Palace some time in April. "I'm really looking forward to it, I have never been to Buckingham Palace before, so it will be great to go there and see the Queen and get presented with a medal at the same time," said Corporal Wood.
