the blast hole and it was, you know, a cloud of dust and all i could see was red and white. reporter: he lost both of his legs and most of his left arm, but never stopped working. despite near mortal injuries, he continued to pass information that was vital to the mission. he helped in the extraction of two marines. reporter: lisa was back home teaching a class of second graders when she was told of the explosion. i wasn t certain that he was out of the woods, but he wasn t dead yet. so there was hope that he would survive. reporter: amazingly, he did. sergeant deslauries survived months of surgeries and physical therapy. i wasn t fun, but when i look back on it now, it s a part of
two marines. reporter: lisa was back home teaching a class of second graders when she was told of the explosion. i wasn t certain that he was out of the woods, but he wasn t dead yet. so there was hope that he would survive. reporter: amazingly, he did. sergeant deslauries survived months of surgeries and physical therapy. i wasn t fun, but when i look back on it now, it s a part of my life and made me the person high am today, hopefully more humble and strong. reporter: but strength is something he never lacked. valor is of the moment, but character is built over a lifetime. the events of the 23rd of september can be described less as a case of spontaneous valor and more as a predictable outcome of circumstance and character intersecting on the