British forces have suffered more fatalities in Helmand than any other Afghan region, losing more than 400 soldiers from the U.S. invasion of the country that ended the Taliban’s five-year, radical Islamist rule through last year. More than 350 U.S. Marines have also died there.

The Marines operated a base in Musa Qala until 2013, although the area was never completely free of militants drawn in part to the district’s status as one of Afghanistan’s most lucrative opium-producing centers.

“The Taliban are getting prepared to attack us from three directions tonight. If we don’t get support soon the district will collapse in Taliban hands,” governor Mohammad Sharif said.

Sabiq Jihadmal, a Twitter user with links to the insurgents, said they had seized several army posts on Sunday night. Over the weekend, a large army camp a few miles from town was overrun, and 25 soldiers were captured.

“They are missing now. The Taliban have their weapons and vehicles now and are fighting us with those heavy weapons,” Sharif said.

Since the Taliban were toppled from power by the U.S. invasion prompted by the Sept. 11 al Qaeda attacks on New York and Washington, they have waged a guerrilla war to regain power in Kabul.

One Helmand district bordering Musa Qala is already totally controlled by the Taliban and they dominate several other neighboring districts. One of those, Naw Zad, has been under alternate Taliban and Afghan army control for several weeks.

Another district, Tajiki, is home to Afghanistan’s largest hydroelectric dam. The dam generates electricity to Helmand and Kandahar but on Monday, because of the fighting, supplies were cut, a frequent occurrence.

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