Soldier, an ex-resident, dies in wreck in Iraq

NILES (AP) -- A soldier who grew up in Niles was killed in a multivehicle accident in Iraq, the Department of Defense said Tuesday.
Lt. Col. Dominic R. Baragona, 42, died Monday near Safwan, Iraq. He is the fifth Ohio soldier killed in Iraq since the beginning of the war.
A tractor-trailer jackknifed on the road and collided with Baragona's Humvee.
Two Humvees and one civilian truck were involved.
An Iraqi citizen also was killed and two soldiers were injured, the Defense Department said.
His unit
Baragona was assigned to the 19th Maintenance Battalion at Fort Sill, Okla. He had been in the army since he left home for West Point at 18, said a cousin, Anthony Baragona of Niles.
"We're all numb," Anthony Baragona said. "He was coming home in June."
Most of the colonel's family lives in Florida and Arizona.
His parents reside in St. George Island, Fla.
Anthony Baragona said his cousin was stationed in Korea before being called to Iraq.
"Wherever they needed him, that's where he went," he said. "He was a colonel. That shows you what they thought of him."
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