Saturday Deadliest Day For Arkansas Troops Since Korea
By: Import User
Updated: January 7, 2009
Vietnam never produced as deadly a day for
Arkansas soldiers as Saturday, when four Arkansans were killed in
rocket attacks on their base in Iraq.
That`s the most to die in combat in one day since December
second, 1950, when five Arkansans were killed in Korea. The
Associated Press reviewed National Archives casualty reports.
Nick Bacon, director of the Arkansas Department of Veterans
Affairs, says it is not surprising that no more than three
Arkansans died in any single day of fighting in Vietnam. Single
states or regions tended to be more heavily hit during a single
engagement in Korea because American forces there included large
numbers of National Guard and Reserve units, which are organized by
state.
Vietnam-era troops were composed of volunteers and draftees who
were largely formed into units without regard to their home state.
With Arkansas` 39th Infantry Brigade now mobilized in Iraq,
Arkansans face that heightened risk again.
