Guard soldier from Missouri killed in Qatar

DOHA, Qatar -- A Missouri Army National Guard soldier was killed and three were injured in a road accident in Qatar, the U.S. military said Sunday.

The Guard identified the soldier as Sgt. Michael C. Barry, 29, of Kansas City. He was one of about 50 members of the 205th Area Support Medical Battalion deployed to the Middle East in December in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Barry is survived by his wife, Spc. Jennifer Barry, also a member of the Missouri National Guard.

"On behalf of all Missourians, I express my deepest sympathy to the family of Sgt. Michael Barry who bravely left his home to go halfway across the world in service to our country," according to a prepared statement from Gov. Bob Holden. "We mourn this loss but honor his courage."

The accident occurred at 5:30 p.m. Saturday as the four were returning from Doha, the capital of this small Gulf kingdom, to Camp As Sayliyah, according to a statement from the U.S. military in Kuwait. A spokesman at As Sayliyah said he believed at least two vehicles were involved, but he had no further details.

As Sayliyah, 15 miles outside Doha, would be the U.S. command center in any war against Iraq.

All four service personnel were transported from the accident site to Ammad General Hospital in the capital, where a man later identified as Barry died from severe head trauma. After initial treatment, the three others were transferred and admitted to military medical facilities at al-Udeid U.S. air base in Qatar.

Chaplain K. Llewellyn McGhee was part of the group that informed Jennifer Barry of her husband's death. He then met with fellow soldiers in another room of the National Guard Armory. "They had just lost a friend," he said. "Some were crying. Some were in shock."

Funeral arrangements were pending.