CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Two soldiers, including one from Tennessee, were killed in Iraq while serving with the 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Bragg, N.C., military officials announced Tuesday.
First Lt. Michael A. Cerrone, 24, of Clarksville and Spc. Harry A. Winkler III, 32, of Jacksonville, Fla., died Sunday of injuries they suffered when a car bomb exploded near their vehicle during combat operations in Samarra.
They were assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 82nd Airborne Division.
Winkler was listed by the Pentagon as being a private first class from Clarksville, but unit records showed his hometown was Jacksonville, Fla. He was previously assigned to the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Ky., which neighbors Clarksville.
He was promoted to specialist posthumously, said Maj. Tom Earnhardt, a spokesman for the 82nd Airborne Division. He also earned a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.
Winkler is survived by his wife, Charity, a son and a stepson.
Cerrone was commissioned in 2004 after graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., his division said in a news release.
The officer also earned a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. He is survived by his father, Army Brig. Gen. James Cerrone, his mother, Elizabeth, and a brother.
