Army Sgt. Kyle J. Harrington

Died January 24, 2009 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

24, of Swansea, Mass.; was assigned to the 542nd Maintenance Company, 80th Ordnance Battalion, 593rd Sustainment Brigade, Fort Lewis, Wash.; died Jan. 24 in Basra, Iraq, of injuries sustained from a non-hostile accident in his unit motor pool.

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Mass. native was father of 2

The Associated Press

FORT LEWIS, Wash. — Relatives of an Army soldier based at Fort Lewis soldier say he has died in a forklift accident in Iraq.

He’s identified as 24-year-old Sgt. Kyle J. Harrington of Swansea, Mass., who was on his second tour of duty in Iraq. He was assigned to repair Humvees and other light vehicles as a member of the 593rd Sustainment Brigade at Joint Base Balad.

Harrington’s wife, Faith, told The News Tribune of Tacoma she was told at Fort Lewis that he was fatally hit by a forklift Jan. 24. He leaves two children, 5-year-old Joshua and 2-year-old Kaylee.

Harrington’s mother-in-law, Debra Ryan, a newsroom assistant at The Standard-Times in New Bedford, Mass., says she also was notified Jan. 24.

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Brother, sister never had ‘sad moment’

The Associated Press

When thinking of her brother, Elizabeth Harrington said the emotions come in waves, but the memories are all golden.

“I can’t be sad when I think of my brother,” she said of Kyle J. Harrington. “I can’t think of one sad moment me and my brother ever had with each other.”

Harrington, 24, of Swansea, Mass., died Jan. 24 in Basra, Iraq, of injuries from a non-hostile accident. He was a 2003 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Lewis.

Brian McCann, his former principal, said he remembered Harrington as a “spirited young man” who was very committed to his future wife and friends.

“Once he joined the Army, he just became a man,” his sister said. “He went from my teenage brother to a man overnight.”

They had dreams together. They were going to buy two houses in New Hampshire, near each other.

“I was going to have him walk me down the aisle when I got married,” she said. “I wanted my brother to give me away.”

He also is survived by his wife, Faith, and two children, Joshua, 5, and Kaylee, 2.

“He was an amazing dad and one of a kind,” his wife said.

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Year after his death, memories of fallen soldier stolen from home

The Associated Press

FALL RIVER, Mass. — It’s not so much the fact that her laptop was stolen that upsets a Massachusetts woman.

It’s the fact that what was stored on it is gone, too.

Elizabeth Harrington told The Herald News of Fall River that someone broke into the apartment she shares with her mother earlier this month and took a laptop that contained dozens of pictures, videos and other memories of her brother, Army Sgt. Kyle Harrington, who died in Iraq.

The theft occurred almost one year to the day after the 24-year-old soldier was killed in a forklift accident.

Elizabeth Harrington said the photos had not been printed or backed up on disc.

Police recovered fingerprints and a hammer at the scene they think was used to pry open the apartment door, but they have not made any arrests.

Swansea bridge renamed in honor of Iraq casualty

The Associated Press

SWANSEA, Mass. — A Swansea bridge has been renamed in honor of a local man killed while serving with the Army in Iraq.

The Wood Street Bridge was dedicated Thursday in honor of Sgt. Kyle Harrington.

Harrington was killed in a forklift accident in January 2009.

The Herald News reports that a memorial was erected in Harrington's honor at the site, carved with the words: "Kyle J. Harrington. Sgt. U.S. Army, died in Iraq Jan. 24, 2009."

Harrington, who would have celebrated his 29th birthday this month, was a 2003 graduate of Joseph Case High School.

Harrington's job was maintaining Humvees and other light vehicles.

He left behind a wife and two children.