Everett, Wash.
Published: Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Explosion kills Whidbey sailor serving in Iraq

Herald staff

 A sailor based in Oak Harbor died in Iraq on Monday when an improvised explosive device blew up near him, the Department of Defense announced Tuesday.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Kevin R. Bewley, 27, of Hector, Ark., was a member of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 11 in Oak Harbor.

On Monday, he was conducting operations in Salah ad Din province when he was killed. His unit is made up of sailors who are highly trained experts at identifying and defusing explosive materials.

Bewley is the sixth member of the unit and the 16th service member with local ties to die in Iraq.

As of Tuesday, at least 3,858 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The figure includes eight military civilians. At least 3,138 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military's numbers.
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