It was necessary to employ heavy demolition charges to breach emplacements sufficiently for the employment of flamethrowers and grenades. In the utter turmoil, it was nearly impossible to maintain contact. Nothing was any longer recognizable. The situation was made doubly uncertain from the fact that fire might come from almost any direction at the flanks, frontally, or from the rear. The going was tough. Weird things can and do happen in such fighting. A Japanese officer charged a U.S. tank with just his bare saber. In the dusk one evening Japanese riflemen tried to walk into the American lines carrying palm branches in front of their bodies so they would not be seen. A U.S. infantryman carrying a flamethrower approached a pillbox, and out through its door bolted a Japanese officer in counterattack. He was squirting a fire extinguisher towards the flame gun. The liquid doused the American soldier as he let the flame go. The Japanese officer dropped dead at his feet, burned to a crisp. [Illustration: National Archives Photo 127-N-88477 _Named “Dyess Field” in honor of the deceased battalion commander who earned the Medal of Honor, the Roi airstrip was quickly converted from Japanese use to become a new base for Marine aircraft as the Central Pacific drive moved westward._] And so it went for four long days until the far tip of Kwajalein had been reached and the island was declared secured. [Illustration: _Navy corpsmen (in their Marine uniforms) are there on the front lines of combat, plasma in hand, saving riflemen’s lives in the critical minutes after a wound._ Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 72399 ] [Illustration: Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 36034 _LtCol Aquilla J. Dyess was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic personal leadership on Namur. Known affectionately as “Big Red,” he was the only person to have been awarded both the Medal of Honor and the Carnegie Medal for Heroism (in 1928). He was honored in 1945 by having a Navy destroyer named after him._] [Illustration: Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 302952 _PFC Richard B. Anderson was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for sacrificing his life when he threw himself upon a live Japanese hand grenade, in order to protect his fellow Marines._] [Illustration: _1stLt John V. Power, after being seriously wounded attacking one pillbox, held his hand over his wound and went on to attack a second one. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor._ Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 307689 ] [Illustration: _Pvt Richard K. Sorenson saved the lives of five Marines by throwing himself on a Japanese grenade which was thrown into the shell crater they occupied. He was awarded the Medal of Honor and later recovered from his terrible wounds._ Marine Corps Historical Collection ]