Two Mainers dead, 12 wounded in Mosul attack
By BILL NEMITZ
Portland Press Herald staff writer
MOSUL, Iraq — A powerful explosion ripped through a crowded dining facility at Forward Operating Base Marez during the noon lunch hour Tuesday, killing 24 people and wounding 64.
Two of the dead and 12 of the wounded were members of the Maine Army National Guard's 133rd Engineer Battalion.
Battalion officials said names of the casualties were being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
The 133rd is one of two battalions in Iraq currently, and has units in Portland, Gardiner, Skowhegan, Saco, Belfast, Lewiston and Norway. We live a few blocks from the National Guard armory here in Portland.
Support the troops. Bring them home....alive.
Update: AP quotes Bill Nemitz:
Bill Nemitz, a columnist with the Portland Press Herald embedded with the Maine National Guard's 133rd Engineer Battalion, told CNN there was a concrete dining hall under construction that was supposed to be finished by Christmas. He said he heard "a lot of discussion" among the troops about the vulnerability of the tent.
Posted by MB Williams at December 21, 2004 06:11 PM
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