| From KREM
TV 01/23/07:
Local Marine killed in Iraq
11:38 AM PST on Tuesday, January 23, 2007
KREM.com
SPOKANE -- 21-year-old Darrell Morris was killed when a roadside bomb hit his vehicle outside Baghdad Saturday night. Morris was a Marine Corporal who volunteered for a second tour in Iraq, just months after surviving a similar attack.
Local Marine killed in Iraq
The family tells KREM 2 News about a young life dedicated to serving his country. Morris was a student here at Ferris High School when the 9-11 terrorist attacks happened. Before he was a graduate, he was a Marine.
Kim and Mik Cole's Friday night phone call with their nephew Darrell ended like dozens they'd had before. Sunday night, 3-marines were at the door of their Spokane Valley home. Just a day after talking to him, the Coles learned the nephew they raised was killed by a terrorist roadside bomb at a police checkpoint near Baghdad.
Two other Marines in his vehicle were seriously wounded. Morris was wounded during his first tour, when his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. The injuries were severe enough to earn Morris a Purple Heart, not enough to stop him from switching units to return to Iraq as soon as he could.
On Friday, he told the Coles about his latest and last award. Morris had outfitted a vehicle with a spare piece of bullet proof glass. His actions saved several soldiers when they ran over an explosive device. It's one of many stories Mik now tells for him. Morris's tour would have ended in April.
His family tells us it will take a week for his body to be flown back from Iraq to Spokane in order to be buried. |
