TACOMA, Wash. -- The Department of Defense has identified a Fort Lewis-based Stryker Brigade soldier who was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq.

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Spc. Michael M. Merila, 23, of Sierra Vista, Ariz., died in the explosion Monday. Merila was assigned to the Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, at Fort Lewis.

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Roadside Bomb Kills Soldier

Another soldier was hurt when the Humvee in which the two were riding was hit by what the military called "an improvised explosive device."

It was the first death of a Stryker soldier as a result of hostile action.

Eight others have been killed in accidents since the brigade arrived three months ago in Iraq.

There was a second roadside bomb attack on a Stryker vehicle Monday but no one was injured and soldiers arrested four suspects.

Stryker Brigade units cover the far northwest corner of Iraq along the Syrian border.