If it wasn’t for the selfless courage of a brave United States Marine veteran, dozens more innocent lives would’ve been lost to the automatic gunfire of the deranged killer this past weekend at the nightclub in Orlando.

A veteran of the war in Afghanistan and now a bouncer at the after hours spot in Florida, Imran Yousuf, 24, directed those trapped inside the building outside to safety, by getting them through a back hallway to a posterior exit while bullets were killing the poor people in the club.

And if it wasn’t for his combat experience, he might not have recognized the sound of the Sig Sauer MCX as it started shooting. Thankfully he did, and was in a position in the hallway to save lives.

“The initial one was about three or four [shots]. That was a shock. Three or four shots go off and you could tell it was a high caliber,” Yousuf said to CBS News. “Everyone froze. I’m here in the back and I saw people start pouring in the back hallway, and they just sardine pack everyone.”

That’s when the Marine vet sprung into action.

This from Task & Purpose:

Terrified patrons began pouring into the hallway, but the exit was latched shut.

“I’m just screaming, ‘Open the door, open the door,’ and no one’s moving because they’re scared,” Yousuf told CBS News. “There was only one choice, either we all stay there and we all die or I could either take the chance to get shot, save everyone else.”

Yousuf was able to get through the crowd to open the door, and said 60 or 70 people were able to make it outside of the club.

“I wish I could save more, to be honest,” Yousuf said. “There’s a lot of people that are dead. …  There’s a lot of people that are dead.”

If you’d like to see and hear Yousuf tell the harrowing account himself, view the following video, via CBS This Morning: