A 41-year-old Army sergeant from Fort Lewis has been killed in Iraq, the Defense Department said Tuesday.
Staff Sgt. Sean D. Diamond, of Dublin, Calif., died Sunday in As Salam when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He was assigned to the 610th Engineer Support Company, 14th Engineer Battalion, 555th Engineer Brigade, Fort Lewis.
As of Tuesday, at least 4,245 members of the U.S. military had died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.
Fort Lewis: Army investigates death
A 16-year-old girl found unconscious at a Fort Lewis barracks is getting better, and investigators are looking to her to explain the circumstances of another teen’s death over the weekend, an Army spokesman said Tuesday.
“Once she is in a state that she can be interviewed by the Criminal Investigation Division, I’m sure the investigators will do so to gather the facts about what the girls were doing on post,” spokesman Joe Piek said.
The two 16-year-old girls were found at a barracks — one passed out, one dead at the scene — at 3:30 a.m. Sunday, with no outward signs of trauma. The girl who was unconscious was in “stable and improving” condition at Madigan Army Medical Center, Piek said. An autopsy on the dead girl has been completed but results are not expected for at least a week.
Investigators have questioned a soldier acquainted with the girls, but Piek said there was no immediate explanation for what they were doing when emergency responders answered a 911 call.
Friday Harbor: Male orca missing
The Center for Whale Research at Friday Harbor reports two additions to Puget Sound orca pods and one big subtraction.
Researcher Ken Balcomb says one new calf has been born in J pod and one in L pod.
Balcomb also says a 31-year-old male knows as L-57 and called Faith has not been seen, although two females he generally travels with have been sighted several times since October in U.S. and Canadian waters.
Tacoma: Zoo uses sustainable fish
The Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma is picky about the tons of restaurant quality food it feeds to otters, sharks and other residents.
Curator John Rupp told The News Tribune of Tacoma that as the zoo teaches the public about sustainability and the threats to species it has to be careful to buy foods that are eco-friendly.
The “green” seafood is 10 to 20 cents per pound more expensive. The zoo will spend about $150,000 this year to provide fish, crabs, clams and shrimp to other creatures in the aquarium and Rocky Shores exhibit.
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