5 Pa. guardsmen killed during ambush in Iraq

Five Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers were killed Wednesday night in Iraq when their heavily armored Bradley Fighting Vehicle was set ablaze in an ambush that started with a bomb explosion and included an attack from rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire.

It was the deadliest single incident so far involving Pennsylvanians, bringing to more than 100 the number of soldiers from the state who have died in support of the U.S. war in Iraq.

The soldiers, members of the 109th Infantry in northeast Pennsylvania, were securing the construction of a railroad bridge at 7:16 p.m. when a bomb made from five or six artillery shells exploded in the road underneath their vehicle, said Lt. Col. Chris Cleaver, a state Guard spokesman.

The incident occurred near Ramadi, an insurgent stronghold west of Baghdad.

Killed in the attack were Staff Sgt. Daniel L. Arnold, 27, of Montrose, Pa.; Staff Sgt. George A. Pugliese, 39, of Carbondale, Pa.; Spec. Lee A. Wiegand, 20, of Hallstead, Pa.; Spec. Eric W. Slebodnik, 21, of Carbondale; and Spec. Oliver J. Brown, 19, of Athens, Pa.

"Once again, the Commonwealth finds itself in the midst of mourning as we remember the sacrifices of our native sons," Gov. Rendell said in a statement. "Our deepest sympathies and prayers are with the families at this time of sorrow."

Wednesday's attack comes just over a month after a grim-faced Rendell announced the deaths of five Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers - including four from the Philadelphia region - in two separate attacks on the same day. Among the soldiers killed in those attacks were Spec. Gennaro Pellegrini Jr., 31, a Philadelphia police officer; Spec. John N. Kulick, 35, a Whitpain Township firefighter; Pfc. Nathaniel "Nate" DeTample, 19, a Bucks County high school graduate; and Sgt. Francis J. Straub Jr., 24, also of Philadelphia.

And less than two weeks ago, three National Guard soldiers from Pennsylvania were killed by a roadside bomb in the Ramadi area. They were Sgt. Michael Egan, 36, of Philadelphia; Spec. William Evans, 22, of Hallstead; and Spec. William Fernandez, 37, of Reading.

Evans was a member of the First Battalion of the 109th Infantry, state officials said. He was with Company B, based in Williamsport. His funeral services were yesterday.