Wednesday Hero

Cpl. Jason A. Karella
20 years old from Anchorage, Alaska
2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force
October 9, 2008

Cpl. Jason A. Karella died supporting combat operations in the Farah province of Afghanistan when the Humvee he was riding in rolled over. He had given up his, as his Father described “best seat in the armored Humvee” to the turret gunner who wasn’t feeling well that day.

“My son was proud of what he stood for,” said his father, Kevin. “He had a fiancee named Beth and he said to me, ‘Dad, I don’t have to worry about Beth getting blown up in a market over there because we’re keeping them busy here.’”

Karella grew up in a strong military family, with his father a former chief warrant officer in the Army, and his brother Josh also having served in Iraq.

Marines recognized Karella for his incredible strength, which he used to carry large amounts of ammunition with him in the battlefield. They referred to him as “the walking ammo supply point” and “the walking arsenal.” Well-respected among his peers, he was awaiting a promotion to Sergeant at the time of his death.

This page has a nice background piece on Cpl. Karell.

Information Was Found On And Copied From MilitaryCity.com

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.

We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived

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Earthquake jolts Alaska

Image via Wikipedia

Damage minimal but scares residents.

A strong earthquake in Alaska‘s most populous region has scared a lot of people but caused almost no damage.

The U.S. Geological Survey says the 5.4 magnitude temblor struck about 24 miles from the town of Willow. The rumbling lasted several minutes in Anchorage, about 58 miles away.

The shaking sent residents and office workers diving under desks and huddling in doorways and was felt as far south as Kenai and north to Fairbanks, a span of 300 miles.

Janet Herr, an employee of the West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center says the quake was 26 miles deep, a reason for both the minimal damage and the vast area over which it was felt.

Anchorage has about 285,000 residents, most of the vast state’s population.

Alaska is seismically active, and has frequent earthquakes although most can’t be felt.

Which is why it’s rare to hear about them.

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