Wisconsin soldier slain, 7 others injured in Afghanistan

[undeterred]

A Wisconsin Army National Guard soldier from Rhinelander was killed and seven other Guard soldiers were injured Thursday in Afghanistan when they were attacked by enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenade fire.

Sgt. Ryan Adams, 26, died in Logar province of wounds suffered in the attack, the Department of Defense said Saturday. The National Guard declined to release the names and the severity of the injuries of the wounded soldiers. The soldiers were receiving medical care as needed, and their families had been notified of the injuries, according to a Guard statement.

Adams joined the Guard in 2001 after he graduated from Rhinelander High School because he wanted to serve his country, his uncle, Patrick Adams of West Bend, said Saturday. "He was very proud to serve his country. He was incredibly proud to be a soldier, and he loved doing what he did," said Patrick Adams, who was with Ryan Adams' parents in Rhinelander on Saturday.

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Ryan Adams was deployed with the Guard's 951st Engineer Company (Sapper). About 100 soldiers from the Rhinelander and Tomahawk-based unit were sent to Afghanistan, where they conduct route-clearance operations for the Army's 101st Airborne Division, the Guard said.

It was the second tour of duty for Adams and his unit. It was deployed to Iraq from May 2003 to April 2004 when it was Company C, 724th Engineer Battalion, the Guard said.


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