Body Of Mayor Killed In Afghanistan Arrives At Dover Air Force Base
Follow CBSPHILLY Facebook | Twitter
DOVER, Del. (CBS) — The body of a Utah mayor, killed serving his country in Afghanistan, arrived at Dover Air Force Base overnight.
The remains of Maj. Brent Taylor landed at approximately 4 a.m. Tuesday. Taylor was shot and killed in Afghanistan during an insider attack while he helped train Afghan security forces.
Philly Teen Takes Dramatic Action To Save Mother's Life In Fire
Taylor is the third American to be killed in an insider attack in Afghanistan since July. This was his fourth tour of duty, his second in Afghanistan.
He had just two months left in his year-long tour.
"There are just really no words to express, the loss we feel," says Jon Call, a North Ogden city administrator and attorney.
In Maj. Brent Taylor, the city of North Ogden, Utah not only lost a soldier but also its mayor.
"I mean, Brent, he is a true American and we have lost a hero," says Toby Mileski, a fellow mayor in a neighboring Utah city and also Taylor's best friend. "He did the right thing for the right reasons. I think that's why people liked him so much."
Texas Newlyweds Die In Helicopter Crash While Leaving Their Wedding
A member of the Utah National Guard, Taylor was a decorated military intelligence officer with joint force headquarters. He earned a purple heart and a bronze star during previous tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Officials say Taylor was shot and killed by an Afghan trainee on Saturday, leaving behind his wife and seven children.
"My heart bleeds for those kids. I can't imagine what they're going to go through," adds Call through tears.
The couple's children range in age from 10-months-old to 13-years-old.
In a previously taped interview, Taylor talked about the duty he felt to serve his country abroad.
'All Gone': Willey Farms Produce Market Destroyed By 5-Alarm Fire In Townsend
"It's definitely hard, I've done it before. We're no different than hundreds of thousands of National Guard members, ready to serve their country at a moment's notice," he said.
In a letter to Taylor's widow and children, Afghan pilot Maj. Abdul Rahman Rahmani wrote, "Tell them that their father was a loving, caring and compassionate man whose life was not just meaningful, it was inspirational... He died on our soil but he died for the success of freedom and democracy in both of our countries."
Another U.S. military member, whose name was not immediately made public, was wounded in the attack that killed Taylor.
The Afghan soldier who committed the attack was killed.
