Following death, one man finds new purpose in life [Image 6 of 6]

SAMARRA, IRAQ

07.01.2005

Courtesy Photo

3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division

From left to right, then-2nd Lt. Leon Matthias, Staff Sgt. George Alexander, Jr., and Sgt. 1st Class Alwyn Cashe. While on patrol, Cashe, of Oviedo, Florida, was in the lead vehicle when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle, Oct. 17, 2005. As fuel leaked from the vehicle, it caught on fire. Cashe and his Soldiers were trapped inside. Despite being covered in fuel, he worked to find an exit point and immediately began pulling the Soldiers out, one by one, as his body was being consumed by flames. By the time Cashe was able to be medically evacuated from the area, burns had covered more than 80 percent of his body. He would eventually be transported to Brooke Army Medical Center, the Department of Defense’s only stateside Level I trauma center, in Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Despite the care Cashe received at the DoD Burn Center, on Nov. 8, 2005, three weeks after sacrificing his life to save his Soldiers, he died as a result of his injuries. Alexander, of Clanton, Alabama, died Oct. 22, 2005, as a result of his injuries. At the time, Matthias, now a major, was Cashe's platoon leader. (Courtesy photo provided by Maj. Leon Matthias)

• Date Taken: 07.01.2005
• Date Posted: 09.09.2014 22:47
• Photo ID: 1541556
• VIRIN: 050701-A-CP001-010
• Resolution: 640x640
• Size: 116.28 KB
• Location: SAMARRA, IQ