Seeing this, Shoup and his party waved frantically to groups of Marines in the following waves to seek protection of the pier. A great number did this, but so many officers and noncommissioned officers had been hit that the stragglers were shattered and disorganized. The pier itself was a dubious shelter, receiving intermittent machine gun and sniper fire from both sides. Shoup himself was struck in nine places, including a spent bullet which came close to penetrating his bull neck. His runner crouching beside him was drilled between the eyes by a Japanese sniper. Captain Carl W. Hoffman, commanding 3/8’s Weapons Company, had no better luck getting ashore than the infantry companies ahead. “My landing craft had a direct hit from a Japanese mortar. We lost six or eight people right there.” Hoffman’s Marines veered toward the pier, then worked their way ashore. Major Ruud, frustrated at being unable to contact Shoup, radioed his regimental commander, Colonel Hall: “Third wave landed on Beach Red 3 were practically wiped out. Fourth wave landed ... but only a few men got ashore.” Hall, himself in a small boat near the line of departure, was unable to respond. Brigadier General Leo D. (“Dutch”) Hermle, assistant division commander, interceded with the message, “Stay where you are or retreat out of gun range.” This added to the confusion. As a result, Ruud himself did not reach the pier until mid-afternoon. It was 1730 before he could lead the remnants of his men ashore; some did not straggle in until the following day. Shoup dispatched what was left of LT 3/8 in support of Crowe’s embattled 2/8; others were used to help plug the gap between 2/8 and the combined troops of 2/2 and 1/2. Shoup finally reached Betio at noon and established a command post 50 yards in from the pier along the blind side of a large Japanese bunker, still occupied. The colonel posted guards to keep the enemy from launching any unwelcome sorties, but the approaches to the site itself were as exposed as any other place on the flat island. At least two dozen messengers were shot while bearing dispatches to and from Shoup. Sherrod crawled up to the grim-faced colonel, who admitted, “We’re in a tight spot. We’ve got to have more men.” Sherrod looked out at the exposed waters on both sides of the pier. Already he could count 50 disabled LVTs, tanks, and boats. The prospects did not look good.