Van of Valor

Distinguished Service Cross recipient recounts deadly 2013 ambush

Van of Valor

NORTH PORT, Fla. – In a gripping interview with Dr. Kevin P. Wallace of Van of Valor, decorated U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technician and Special Forces Ranger Sergeant First Class Jeff Dawson detailed the traumatic 2013 night that earned him the Distinguished Service Cross.

He shared the unique mindset that allows EOD specialists to operate under unimaginable pressure.

Dawson, who also holds two Purple Hearts, described the mission of October 5, 2013, in Kandahar, Afghanistan, as one of the most complex and devastating EOD incidents in recent military history. 

What began as a routine operation quickly turned into a coordinated ambush, resulting in four U.S. service members killed, six severely wounded, including multiple amputations, and a total of 28 Purple Hearts awarded.

“It was a complete ambush,” Dawson said. “They waited for us to get into position and then armed all the pressure plates at the same time.”

As the sole EOD technician on the ground for much of the engagement, Dawson was responsible for clearing routes, evacuating casualties, and identifying improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in a 100-meter area riddled with an estimated 40 to 50 bombs. 

During the chaos, he was wounded twice, first by fragmentation from a suicide vest detonation, and later when a fellow soldier stepped on a pressure plate near him, rupturing his eardrum and peppering his left side with shrapnel.

Despite his injuries, Dawson continued to perform his duties: applying tourniquets, clearing paths for medevac, and ensuring the safety of remaining personnel. His actions that night were later recognized with the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation’s second-highest military award for valor.

Yet Dawson remains characteristically humble. 

“To be honest with you, that’s my job,” he told Wallace. “I was being told to do my job… I was just reacting.”

Dawson’s journey to becoming an EOD technician was unconventional. 

Raised in Utah in a Mormon household “raised against violence,” he found structure through his mother’s partner, an Army soldier. 

After struggling to afford college and working a warehouse job, a friend’s recruiter recommendation led him to enlist, with a focus on EOD because the Army allowed him to enter the field directly.

“I liked to play with fireworks,” Dawson admitted, acknowledging an early fascination with explosives. “I still have all my fingers and toes.”

The EOD Mindset: Dissociation and Focus

Throughout the interview, Dawson emphasized the psychological discipline required of EOD technicians. 

“You have to disassociate,” he explained. “You have to kind of put yourself in this space where things don’t really matter to you.”

He described a training philosophy built on repetition and muscle memory, so that in crisis, “you revert to your lowest form of training.” 

This ability to slow down and perceive hidden threats, whether in combat or in evidence collection roles, sets EOD technicians apart.

“We’re not just the explosives guys,” Dawson said. “We’re collecting evidence, submitting it, helping triage… It’s all kinds of stuff.”

Dawson also revealed he was later wounded by friendly fire in a separate 2019 incident, which he considers his personal “Alive Day.” 

He continues to serve, reflecting on his experiences with a sense of duty rather than heroism.

“The more you put yourself in those situations, the better you will ultimately react when something happens,” he said. “You’re building blocks. Your muscle memory.”

His story stands as a testament to the courage and cool-headedness of EOD units operating alongside Special Forces, a world where the next wire cut could be the last, and where seeing the unseen is a matter of survival.To read more or help the Van of Valor mission, visit www.HelpVoV.com.