Army Staff Sgt. Ivan V. Alarcon

Died November 17, 2005 serving during Operation Iraqi Freedom

23, of Jerome, Idaho; assigned to the 473rd Quartermaster Company, Hunter Army Airfield, Ga.; killed Nov. 17 when his Humvee accidentally rolled over during combat operations in Tal Afar, Iraq.

Idaho soldier dies in Humvee accident in Iraq

Associated Press

BOISE, Idaho — A 23-year-old Army sergeant from Idaho died in Iraq when the Humvee he was driving in flipped over, KTVB-TV reported Sunday evening.

Ivan Vargas Alarcon, a 1999 Jerome High School graduate, died last week after being taken to a hospital in Iraq.

His tour of duty was due to end in January, when he planned to return to south-central Idaho’s Magic Valley region to open up a car-repair shop, said Maria Crabtree, a family friend, in an interview with KTVB-TV in Boise.

“He was an awesome kid,” said Crabtree, acting as a spokeswoman for the family, adding that specific details of Alarcon’s death weren’t immediately available.

Alarcon, who was with an Army unit based in Georgia, is survived by two sisters, four brothers and his parents.

His body was being transported to the United States on Sunday.

Including Alarcon, at least 15 soldiers from Idaho have died in Iraq since the U.S. invasion began in March 2003.