Spc. Justin Buxbaum non-combat death in Afghanistan

Maine Native Killed In Afghanistan


Web Editor: John Blunda, Associate Producer
Created: 5/27/2008 1:38:33 PM
Updated: 5/28/2008 3:50:44 PM



SOUTH PORTLAND (NEWS CENTER) -- A soldier from South Portland has been killed while serving with the military in Afghanistan. According to family members, Justin Buxbaum died after being shot in a non-combat related incident.


Buxbaum's grandfather says Justin was shot in the stomach. He says the Army is looking into what happened, and says his grandson's death may have been caused by friendly fire.

He says Justin was serving his third tour overseas. He had already served two tours of duty in Iraq.

Justin Buxbaum graduated from South Portland High School in 2004. His aunt is a teacher there.

Two other South Portland graduates have died in fighting in Iraq. Marine Lance Cpl. Angel Rosa and Army Sgt. Jason Swiger were killed within two weeks of each other in March 2007.
http://www.wcsh6.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=87986



Justin Buxbaum was interviewed in 2005

Troops Comb Streets of Iraq for IEDs
Soldiers work to ensure roads are safe for convoys, civilians.

By U.S. Army Master Sgt. Lek Mateo
56th Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office
Texas Army National Guard
TIKRIT, Iraq, July 8, 2005 — The improvised explosive device, or IED, is the greatest casualty producer in Iraq, and the three-letter acronym has found its place in the military vocabulary.
Department of Defense statistics show that IEDs have killed almost 20 percent of service members in Iraq and wounded many more. The official figure does not show the numbers of innocent civilians who were killed or wounded by these crude devices.

"You are always going to be scared . and I have been. But I have a lot of faith in my equipment and training," Pfc. Justin L. Buxbaum, combat engineer of Company B, 467th Engineer Battalion.

To help combat the problem, specially trained military combat engineers and explosive ordnance disposal teams have joined forces to hunt and remove the IEDs that are hidden in tons of trash and debris that litter Iraq's highways and roads.

The job is very tedious and dangerous as the teams employ their high-tech equipment to scour the endless miles of roadway looking for any telltale signs that may reveal the location of the low-tech threat. Many compare the daunting tasks to looking for a needle in a haystack.

To help the soldiers in their search, IED hunters use their keen eyesight and experience to spot an IED and then verify its exact location by using specially designed armored vehicles before calling in the EOD team to destroy it.

The soldiers hope that their strong commitment to their work and attention to detail will ultimately help save other soldiers and innocent civilian lives.

Pfc. Justin L. Buxbaum, of South Portland, Maine, and a combat engineer of Company B, 467th Engineer Battalion, U.S. Army Reserves, said he knew very little about IEDs before he was deployed to Iraq with his unit.

Now the private, who has been in the service for only six months, finds himself face to face with the deadly device as he drives a heavily armored truck called the Buffalo to a suspected IED location. He goes there to make visual identification of an IED before calling in the EOD team.

Buxbaum said driving the Buffalo is like driving a big bus. The vehicle has an armored V-shaped hull undercarriage designed to deflect the explosion and shrapnel from an IED outwards, away from the crew.

The private said he believes in the reliability of the Buffalo after having seen firsthand the amount of punishment it can take, but he still respects the IEDs.

"You are always going to be scared . and I have been," Buxbaum said. "But I have a lot of faith in my equipment and training."

He added that the work is slow and meticulous. He and his crew never lose focus as they clear the routes because they have people's lives to think about and can't afford any doubts in what they are doing.

"It is a very rewarding feeling knowing that the job that we perform may save someone's life so that they can go back home to their families."

Spc. Randall S. Bollinger, of Clarksville, Ind., and also a combat engineer of the 467th Engineer Battalion, is on the security team that travels ahead of the lumbering Buffalo in more mobile armored HMMWVs to look for the IEDs.

Bollinger emphasized that this is a type of job in which everyone has to pay attention to detail and be very cognizant of the environment to know what is out of place.

The specialist said the people who are placing the IEDs are very insensitive because they endanger everyone's lives with their indiscriminate attacks. But helping to find an IED before it can do any harm gives him and his team a sense of satisfaction.

"I think we are doing something good for our soldiers and the public when we locate and remove the IEDs -- especially for the children," said Bollinger.

No one appreciates the job that the engineers do more than Staff Sgt. Arthur M. Ruiz, of Leander, Texas, and a Texas National Guardsman in the 56th Brigade Combat Team, 36th Infantry Division. He has traveled thousands of miles on the main supply routes with his security team protecting supply convoys.

Ruiz said that it makes him feel good knowing engineers are out there trying to find IEDs and that, even if they find only one, then that is one less that they will have to come into contact with during their journey.

"I respect the combat engineers and the EOD team for the dangerous job that they do," Ruiz said. "They put their life on the line to protect ours."

http://www.defendamerica.mil/articles/jul2005/a070705dg3.html