A tin of tobacco is left out for slain U.S. Marines Master Sgt. Jerome D. Hatfield and Lance Cpl. Pedro A. Barbozaflores following a memorial service in Helmand province. (THE WASHINGTON POST / July 14, 2009)
CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -
Two North Carolina-based Marines died
last week during combat in Afghanistan's Helmand province, the
Department of Defense said Tuesday.
The Marines were identified Tuesday as Lance Cpl. Pedro A. Barbozaflores, 27, of Glendale, Calif., and Master Sgt. Jerome D. Hatfield, 36, of Axton, Va.
Axton sits on Highway 58, about halfway between Martinsville and Danville.
The Marines died Saturday. They were assigned to the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune.
Hatfield was the company operations chief for the battalion's Delta Company. He joined the Marines in June 1991 and was promoted to the rank of master sergeant in Sept. 2007.
Previous deployments for Hatfield included tours in Iraq in 2006 and 2008 and operations in the Adriatic Sea in 1992 and 2000. Hatfield was a former drill instructor and is survived by a wife and three children, ages 4 to 19, the Marine Corps said.
Barbozaflores was a crew member of a light armored vehicle crewman. He joined the Marines in March 2008, was promoted to lance corporal in December and deployed to Afghanistan in June.
The Marines were identified Tuesday as Lance Cpl. Pedro A. Barbozaflores, 27, of Glendale, Calif., and Master Sgt. Jerome D. Hatfield, 36, of Axton, Va.
Axton sits on Highway 58, about halfway between Martinsville and Danville.
The Marines died Saturday. They were assigned to the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune.
Hatfield was the company operations chief for the battalion's Delta Company. He joined the Marines in June 1991 and was promoted to the rank of master sergeant in Sept. 2007.
Previous deployments for Hatfield included tours in Iraq in 2006 and 2008 and operations in the Adriatic Sea in 1992 and 2000. Hatfield was a former drill instructor and is survived by a wife and three children, ages 4 to 19, the Marine Corps said.
Barbozaflores was a crew member of a light armored vehicle crewman. He joined the Marines in March 2008, was promoted to lance corporal in December and deployed to Afghanistan in June.
