Maryland Soldier Killed in Afghanistan By Roadside Bomb

Updated at 3:35 p.m. TAKOMA PARK, MD — A soldier from Takoma Park was killed Tuesday when a roadside explosive device detonated in Afghanistan, according to the Department of Defense.

Staff Sgt. Adam S. Thomas, 31, of Tacoma Park, died while on patrol in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, from injuries caused by an improvised explosive device. The incident is under investigation.

Thomas was assigned to Company B, 2nd Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Carson, CO. More than 2,200 U.S. service members have died in Afghanistan since 2001, the Pentagon says.

Thomas was on a counter-terror mission with Afghan National Defense Security Forces against the Islamic State of Iraq and a Syria affiliate called Islamic State-Khorasan Province, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told Stars and Stripes. Thomas and the patrol were in a “combat situation,” said Cook, but there was no indication that Thomas was specifically targeted for the blast.

Thomas was a decorated hero who received awards including a Purple Heart and Bronze Star. Gov. Larry Hogan has ordered Maryland flags to be lowered for three days to honor Thomas' military service.

"The First Lady and I ask all Marylanders to join us in praying for the family and friends of Staff Sgt. Thomas," Hogan said.

Takoma Park Mayor Kate Stewart told WTOP that, “A loss like this for our community is a great one.”

She added, “Takoma Park is a very close-knit community and I’ve already started receiving emails from residents who didn’t know Staff Sgt. Thomas, but who have reached out to make sure that we were aware of his death, as well as to ask is there something we can do in the city to remember him.”

Staff Sgt. Thomas entered the Army in April 2008; this was his third deployment, the Army said.

»Photo of Staff Sgt. Adam S. Thomas courtesy of Fort Carson Public Affairs