The force of the blast knocked over a pile of empty canisters near an artillery piece nicknamed "Betsy" by its crew chief, Brian Blakey, 31, of Russellville, Ky.
Sgt. Fladymir Napoleon, 25, of Asbury Park, N.J., restacked the canisters in piles of three.
Sgt. Fladymir Napoleon, 25, a member of an Army artillery unit, is surrounded by empty canon casings and artillery rounds near the city of Fallujah.
(Photos Jackie Spinner -- The Washington Post)
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_____Fight for Fallujah_____
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Video: The Post's Jackie Spinner reports on the progress of the offensive in Fallujah.
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Map: The push by U.S. and Iraqi forces into the heart of Iraq's "City of Mosques" is detailed.
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"It's a great thing blowing stuff up," said Napoleon, who has been in Iraq for nine months. "We're getting the city free, back to democracy. I'm feeling pretty good. We play a big role in the battle."
Inside the Paladin's turret, where the chief and two crew members load the big gun, Blakey rubbed his hand across a 155mm round sitting in the chamber. "Three of these," he said, patting the round, "and I can take out a whole building."
Blakey said he tries not to think about what the shell hits -- humans or structures.
"I just look at it like we've got people out there, too," he said. "If we don't get rid of the target, one of our guys could get killed. As long as no civilians are out there, we're doing all right."
Blakey said an Army recruiter persuaded him to be an artilleryman by describing the Paladin. "He told me it was the biggest gun in the military, and I said, 'I'll take it,' " he recalled.
Blakey said he senses the importance of artillery's role in the Fallujah operation.
Iraqi authorities "want to have elections in January," he said. "In order for them to have democracy, or whatever you want to call it, whatever, if we take care of Fallujah, the guys who come in next, they won't go through the same things we did. It's worse now than during the war."
At the other gun a short distance away, Spec. John Kennedy, 26, of Dallas, asked Dotson about the rounds his crew had fired that morning. "What were we shooting at?" he asked. "Did we get it?"
Yes, Dotson told him. They hit the mosque. Twenty confirmed killed.
"We really get no glory," said Staff Sgt. Jason Moye, 25, of Phoenix.
Special correspondent Omar Fekeiki contributed to this report.
