Desmond Doss, The Hero Who Fought Without Weapon

Chapter 3: Battle Of Okinawa, 1945 (HACKSAW RIDGE)

For Doss, and the 77th division, they had to fight the bloodiest war in the Pacific. The objective was to bomb the bases and secure the island, as it was just 350 miles south of the Japanese mainland. On April 29th, the army was given the task of climbing a 400 ft high cliff with no safety equipment, just a rope ladder to the top. This cliff was called the "Meydan Escarpment", nicknamed by the Americans "Hacksaw Ridge". Before climbing, everyone waited for Doss's prayers. When he was done, the team was assured that their plan was going to work out. Once they reached the top, they came under heavy artillery fire, inflicting severe casualties on the American troops. They had to secure another military base owned by the Japanese. On May 4th, while attacking a heavily fortified enemy base, a man intended to throw a grenade but his arm was shot, delaying the throw and thus exploding his hand and wounding several teammates. Doss was able to get the injured men to safety. During the night, the soldiers hid in rock caves but were inflintrated by them. The next day, Doss had to climb the ridge to help a wounded man but his left leg was injured because he fell off the day before. He ran to the man who was breathing heavily. Doss needed to use fluids to heal him, which resulted in exposing himself to enemy fire, as he needed to hold it up high. His actions ended in vain though, as the man had died before he could bring him to safety. Later, there were orders to destroy a fort. Doss made his prayers and was happy to help with the assault. The troops threw gasoline cans which made a huge explosion. Suddenly, a large team of Japanese soldiers ambushed them, causing them to panic and climb down the mountain. Despite this, Doss refused to take cover, helping his comrades recover. The medic spent hours even though he was exhausted.  Then, to bring the really injured down the cliff, he tied a rope to a tree and lowered them down to safety. Does, currently exposed to potential enemy fire, could be seen praying to get one more to safety. Calculating the number of soldiers saved, Doss had saved around 75 men. The Americans would eventually go back up and on May 7th, would take the position. By some miracle, Doss survived unhurt, but that was soon to change. On May 21st, while tending to injured soldiers, a grenade landed beneath him. He stepped on it, injuring his legs. But he remained in his position for 5 hours, tending to the wounded, until a medic decided to bring him to a first aid tent. On the way, they came across an injured man. He insisted that the man would be on the strecher, while he waits. While waiting, a comrade came to his rescue. Due to his selfless acts in Okinawa, Doss received the Medal of Honor from the president, Harry S. Trueman. Because of one man, many were able to get home.