Army Sgt. Michael Egan

Died September 19, 2005 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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36, of Philadelphia; assigned to the 1st Squadron, 104th Cavalry Regiment, 28th Infantry Division, Pennsylvania Army National Guard, Philadelphia; killed Sep. 19 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during patrol operations in Ramadi, Iraq.

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South Jersey soldier killed in Iraq

By George Clark

Courier-Post Staff

Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael Egan, 36, a 1987 graduate of Pennsauken High School, was one of four soldiers reported killed when their vehicle was blown up by a roadside bomb in Iraq, family members said.

Egan, who had a wife and 3-year-old daughter in New Castle, Del., was serving in an Army National Guard unit based in Philadelphia and had been deployed to Iraq for less than three months, his family said.

He was one of four soldiers killed when their vehicle exploded Monday. Although they were serving in the Army, the soldiers were attached to the 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, according to the Associated Press, quoting U.S. military officials.

The incident occurred near the insurgent stronghold of Ramadi, about 70 miles west of Baghdad, the Associated Press reported.

News of Egan’s death came to Pennsauken shortly after 6 a.m. Tuesday, Krista Egan said. His mother, Irene, who lives on Walnut Avenue, was on the telephone when an Army sergeant walked up to the door.

“My mother-in-law was talking on the telephone to Mike’s wife, Maria, when he came,” Krista Egan said. “Maria had just got the news. The Army sergeant told my mother-in-law it was his first time notifying a family.”

Krista Egan, who is married to Egan’s brother Patrick, 28, said her brother-in-law served in the Marine Corps for eight years, was a civilian for a year, then joined the National Guard.

As a Marine, Egan had been deployed previously to the Persian Gulf and served in Afghanistan, said John Green of Collingswood, Krista Egan’s father.

“He was well-liked by everyone,” Patrick Egan said.

“He was a very gentle person,” said Anne Frentzen, an aunt from Beach Haven.

Egan worked for Alliance Electric, near Philadelphia International Airport, John Green said.

Egan and his wife and daughter lived in Pennsauken and Philadelphia until moving to New Castle, Del., less than a year ago, he said.

Egan is survived by his wife, Maria; a daughter, Samantha; his mother, Irene; and two brothers, Tony and Patrick.