 Yevtyukhin ordered his battery officer, Captain Viktor Romanov, to call for artillery to shell their position.Romanov, who had also lost both legs to a mortar round and was on the verge of losing consciousness, obeyed the order and shells began to hit their position, killing both men.According to "Obshchaya Gazeta", some 30 paratroopers were still alive before the shelling of their position began, however it is not known how many of them were killed by friendly fire.