Posted on 04/09/2007 1:44:54 PM PDT by Clive
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan—The bomb that killed six Canadian soldiers on Sunday was likely a bigger than normal charge that was set at a choke point where vehicles would have to drive in order to bypass a series of desert irrigation wells, said the commander who leads the battle group that lost the soldiers.
"It was a big bomb," said Lt.-Col. Rob Walker, commanding officer of 2nd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment. Mr. Walker said he believes the bomb was a pressure-sensitive improvised explosive device that would have gone off under the weight of the passing LAV III.
Six soldiers from 2 RCR Hotel Company died and one other was seriously injured after their vehicle hit the device, which was planted about 75 kilometres west of Kandahar City.
The fallen soldiers are: Sgt. Donald Lucas, Cpl. Aaron E. Williams, Pte. Kevin Vincent Kennedy, Cpl. Brent Poland and Pte. David Robert Greenslade, all of the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment based in Gagetown, N.B., as well as Cpl. Christopher Paul Stannix, a reservist from the Princess Louise Fusiliers, based in Halifax.
On Monday, Mr. Walker said the 10-man LAV III crew was on its final task of a five week trip on Sunday and that once they were done they were due to come back to base for a rest before getting their next assignment.
Members of Hotel company did not want to speak with the media on Monday, though their regiment’s sergeant major said the group is "bouncing back."
"We understand the risks we are going into, but they bounce back well," said Chief Warrant Officer Mark Baisley.
"There are guys who have spent decades in this battle group," he added. "This company has trained together for over a year. We consider them our comrades, but also our friends. "They’ll bounce back."
Meanwhile, about 200 soldiers gathered at the NATO base Monday morning for a somber ceremony to mark the 90th anniversary of Vimy Ridge. After that ceremony, Col. Mike Cessford, deputy commander of Task Force Afghanistan, spoke about the poignancy of Sunday’s loss, especially in light of what Canadian’s sacrificed at Vimy Ridge.
"(Sunday) we saw six soldiers fall in the line of their duty. It is the price we pay to do the right thing," he said.
"To my mind nothing comes without cost, without pain, on prize is given to you," he added. "In my mind, I see the stark parallel between what is happening now every day in Afghanistan and that long war 1914 to 1918."
In Canada, the shock was settling in at CFB Gagetown where five of the soldiers were based and the community is pulling together to support each other, said one of its members.
“It’s difficult now because it impacts not only this base but the entire community,” Lt. Brian Owens told the CBC. “Our resolve is there to carry on. Our No. 1 mission is to support the families and that’s why members are getting up this morning, coming into work, leaving their families at home and getting together and making the next stage of this ordeal easier for the families and to carry on to make sure this is done right.”
CFB Gagetown has a close relationship with the nearby town, Oromocto, and on Monday the town’s mayor said everyone there is reeling from the news.
“Although the sun is shining today, it’s sure a dark day in Oromocto,” said Fay Tidd in an interview with CanWest News Service.
In the town of about 9,000 people, nearly every family includes someone who is retired military or currently serving at the nearby base. The close-knit community is mourning alongside the families of the soldiers killed, said Ms. Tidd, even while anxiety is heightened for the safety of others still in the field.
Ms. Tidd said many people are seeking comfort by gathering at Gagetown’s Military Family Resource Centre today, which she calls “the glue that holds military families together.”
The loss of the six soldiers is all the more poignant because it came while families were gathered for Easter celebrations and many Canadians were looking back 90 years to Vimy, she said.
“Everyone was glued to televisions remembering sacrifices their great-grandfathers and grandfathers had made, and then all of a sudden the news had come on that six Canadian soldiers were again victims of what is a different type of war but nonetheless is a military maneuver and duty,” Ms. Tidd said.
Another close-knit community, in a different Atlantic province, is also pulling together in the wake of the tragic news.
Kennedy, 20, was from the small town of St. Lawrence, N.L.
Dona Molloy, whose son Bill is also in the military and currently serving Afghanistan, remembers Kennedy as a young boy and said he was always an upbeat child.
“Every family of a soldier over there is affected. It doesn’t matter if their son or daughter was involved, it still affects them, because you always know in the back of your mind — although you don’t sit down and think about it, you try not to — it’s always in the back of your mind that the possibility is there,” said Ms. Molloy.
Another Newfoundland community lost one of its own in Sunday’s deadly blast. Lucas, 31, was raised in St. John’s. The father of two was remembered Monday as an “excellent leader” and loving family man. He was stationed at CFB Gagetown and lived in the nearby town of Burton.
"He was an excellent leader and very proud of the soldiers under his command. He believed in the mission and that he had a role to play to help those in need in Afghanistan," his family said in a statement. Lucas’s two children are named Matthew and MacKenzie.
"In his spare time, Don enjoyed everything to do with the outdoors, from hunting to boating, to sitting around the campfire with Matthew, and looked forward to his days boating on the river," the family said.
In Nova Scotia, Stannix’s family was trying to cope with the news. The 24-year-old was a reservist from the Princess Louise Fusiliers, based in Halifax. In addition to his grieving family, the 24-year-old leaves behind a fiancee in Dartmouth, NS. Stannix enlisted in the Canadian Forces in 2000 and his deployment to Afghanistan in February was his first overseas mission.
His family also released a statement that said how much he loved his family, Canada, and the Canadian Forces. “He believed in the mission in Afghanistan and believed he and his fellow soldiers were making a difference,” his family said. “Chris will be missed for so many reasons.”
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I am so sorry for our loss here.
We all pay one way or another.
In this case, those heroes and their families are baring a heavier cost now, in order that those of here, and those to come, might not have to pay such a price again.
May God bless the families of these men. Their sacrifices will not be forgotten.
PRESENT ARMS
Take your rest my brothers in arms
And to all of Canada - thank you for your support in this world war
Canada.... meet thy enemies....
"It was a big bomb," said Lt.-Col. Rob Walker, commanding officer of 2nd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment. Mr. Walker said he believes the bomb was a pressure-sensitive improvised explosive device that would have gone off under the weight of the passing LAV III.
Canada ping.
Please send me a FReepmail to get on or off this Canada ping list.
Prayers going up for these brave lads and their families.
.............. FRegards
Thank you.
You are VERY WELCOME.
I hope all Canadians and all my countrymen here down south understand and appreciate what your lads do for us. Their sacrifices are keeping us all SAFE.
Regards,
Levante
You are VERY WELCOME.
I hope all Canadians and all my countrymen here down south understand and appreciate what your lads do for us. Their sacrifices are keeping us all SAFE.
Regards,
Levante
LILLE, FRANCE – Prime Minister Stephen Harper today issued the following statement on the deaths of six Canadian soldiers in southern Afghanistan:
“Canada is mourning the deaths of six soldiers killed in the line of duty yesterday while participating in a NATO offensive against Taliban insurgents in southern Afghanistan. On behalf of all Canadians, I express my deepest condolences to the loved ones of Sergeant Donald Lucas, Corporal Brent D. Poland, Corporal Christopher Paul Stannix, Corporal Aaron E. Williams, Private David Robert Greenslade, and Private Kevin Vincent Kennedy.
The incident that claimed the lives of six Canadian soldiers and injured a number of others took place while Canadian troops were supporting an effort by allied forces to create a safer environment for the reconstruction of this region of Afghanistan. Our soldiers were conducting convoy security operations when an improvised explosive device detonated close to their armoured vehicle.
Our hearts ache for them and their families and our thoughts and prayers are with them. These events coming on the 90th commemoration of the battle of Vimy Ridge once more remind us of the sacrifices that our men and women in uniform have made and continue to make to defend our country and their fellow human beings.
I also extend my wishes for speedy recovery to those injured in the attack, and pray for the safety of their comrades as they press on to complete their mission.”
Thanks.
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