![\"1SG](\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/1SG-William-Howard-300x198.jpg\")
<\/a><\/center><\/p>\nFirst Sergeant William Howard of Hotel Company, 1st Battalion, 222nd Aviation Regiment at Joint Base Langely-Eustis was awarded the Soldiers Medal for his actions in Afghanistan on July 3, 2014, according to af.mil<\/a>. Howard reacted to a rocket attack on a hangar on the Kabul Air Base;<\/p>\n Fearing the safety of those inside the hangar, Howard quickly entered a vehicle and sped toward the attack site. Upon arrival, he confirmed the second floor of the building was clear, but heard shouting from fellow Soldiers, indicating personnel trapped on the first floor.<\/p>\n As Chief Warrant Officer 4 Kevin Huggins and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Moran called on Howard for help and Larry Hottot, he heard shouting and banging from a nearby door, behind which was a prayer room for Afghan soldiers.<\/p>\n “The doors were locked from [both sides] and warped from the heat,” said Howard. “We started using anything and everything we could to pry open those doors before someone brought us a heavy duty pry-bar.”<\/p>\n Once the doors were opened, two soldiers emerged under their own power followed by a cloud of smoke and heat, but three others remained inside, incapacitated.<\/p>\n “We just went in there without thinking,” said Howard. “We needed to get them all out no matter what.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n