"Did Anyone Die?"

That's the question the hero of Fort Hood, Sgt. Kim Munley, asked when she awoke from her surgery:

Sergeant Munley, 34, was unconcious after being shot three times by Hasan and was rushed to hospital after she lost so much blood doctors thought she would die.

She was shot twice in the left thigh and once in the wrist but still managed to bring Malik down with four shots of her own.

Dr Kelly Matlock, who treated Munley in hospital, said: "She opened her eyes and said, 'Did anybody die?' That's what she said." Sgt Munley has now been told that Hasan killed 13 people and wounded 38 but her actions saved the lives of many others.

Hasan still had dozens of bullets left to fire from his two handguns, including a semi-automatic pistol.

Sgt Munley, a mother of two daughters, is just 5ft 3ins tall, but colleagues described her as a "fireball" and a "tough cookie." She is a member of Fort Hood's SWAT team.

When she saw Hasan firing she ran toward him and started shooting.

Witnesses said she fired twice and Hasan then turned and charged. Sgt Munley fired more rounds as she fell back, continuing to fire after being shot.

Chuck Medley, director of emergency services at Fort Hood, who has spoken to the officer, said she was in "good spirits." Sgt Munley's grandmother, Monirie Metz, said: "Kim doesn't want be called a hero. She's worried about everyone else right now." Sgt Munley is married to Matthew Munley, a special forces soldier, and has two daughters aged three and 13.

I know she's a civilian and ineligible for a Purple Heart, but her wounds were obtained in a battle of the War On Terror, just as surely as anyone wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan.

And she certainly did more to earn hers than John Kerry did his.