Fort Bragg soldier, 26, killed on patrol in Iraq
Published: Wed, Feb. 06, 2008 12:30AM
Modified Wed, Feb. 06, 2008 03:48AM
E-Mail
Print
tool name
closeA soldier with ties to North Carolina was killed during patrol exercises in Iraq on Sunday, the Department of Defense announced Tuesday.
Cpl. Christopher J. West, 26, of Arlington, Texas, died of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated while he was on foot patrol in Muqdadiyah, Iraq. He was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg.
West, a combat medic, joined the Army in January 2007. He completed Basic Combat Training at Fort Benning, Ga., in March and Healthcare Specialist Advanced Individual Training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, in July. He completed the Basic Airborne Course in Fort Benning, Ga., and was assigned to his unit a month later.
Related Content
More Iraq
"Spc. West brought an upbeat attitude to the platoon that spread to everyone he met," 1st Lt. Rich Demarais, West's platoon leader, said in a press release. "He loved being a combat medic and a paratrooper. It was an honor to be his platoon leader."
West's awards include the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart.
West is survived by his parents, John and Hattie West of Arlington, Texas.
Get it all with convenient home delivery of The News & Observer.
The News & Observer is pleased to be able to offer its users the opportunity to make comments and hold conversations online. However, the interactive nature of the internet makes it impracticable for our staff to monitor each and every posting.
Since The News & Observer does not control user submitted statements, we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted on our website. In addition, we remind anyone interested in making an online comment that responsibility for statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not The News and Observer.
If you find a comment offensive, clicking on the exclamation icon will flag the comment for review by the administrators, we are counting on the good judgment of all our readers to help us.
