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Seven soldiers, sailors safe after boat capsizes in Iraq

Feb- 6-2004 » Filed Under: 3/2 SBCT

[Link to Full Article] (Full text provided below)

Michael Gilbert; News Tribune

MOSUL, Iraq - Seven soldiers and sailors were tossed into the Tigris River on Thursday afternoon when their boat capsized as they searched for two missing servicemen. All seven made it safely to shore.

Stryker brigade officials said the boat was towing a drag bar that got caught in debris beneath the surface, swamping and then capsizing the craft. The boat was later recovered.

Those aboard the boat were searching for the remains of Staff Sgt. Christopher Bunda of the Fort Lewis-based brigade and Lt. Adam Mooney of the 3rd Squadron, 17th Aviation Regiment based in Fort Drum, N.Y. They are presumed lost after a pair of accidents Jan. 25.

Bunda, 29, disappeared after the Iraqi police patrol boat he was riding in capsized. Mooney, an OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopter pilot, was lost after his aircraft crashed into the river as he and co-pilot Chief Warrant Officer 3 Patrick Dorff searched for Bunda.

Dorff's body was recovered from the river Jan. 29 not far from the crash site.

Brigade officials said the search for the missing men remained their highest priority.

Michael Gilbert, News Tribune


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