Four OSI (Office of Special Investigations) and 2 Security Forces airmen died Monday when a Taliban suicide bomber drove a motorcycle packed with explosives into a joint NATO-Afghan patrol just outside of Bagram Air Base, injuring two additional U.S. personnel and one Afghan in the process.
The attack occurred just north of the capital of Kabul and is the deadliest for U.S. personnel serving abroad since August.
In a prepared statement, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter says the attack is “a painful reminder of the dangers our troops face every day in Afghanistan.”
“Our heartfelt sympathies go out to the families and friends of those affected in this tragic incident, especially during this holiday season,” said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. William Shoffner, chief public affairs officer for U.S. operations in Afghanistan.
Upon notifying next of kin, the Air Force released the names of the dead, which include one of the Air Force’s first openly gay officers and a cop in the New York City Police Department.
Maj. Adrianna Vorderbruggen
Maj. Adrianna M. Vorderbruggen. (Source: Air Force Public Affairs)
Maj. Vorderbruggen (age 36) leaves behind her wife, Heather, and a son, Jacob. Vorderbruggen hailed from Plymouth, Minnesota and was assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, 9th Field Investigations Squadron, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. She attended George Washington University and the United States Air Force Academy, class of 2002.
Vorderbruggen was active in the effort to repeal the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy that forbid gay military members from openly serving in the military. She married her wife, Heather, in a public ceremony after the policy was repealed and is the first openly gay Air Force office to be killed in combat.
Tech. Sgt. Joseph Lemm
Technical Sgt. Joseph G. Lemm. (Source: Air Force Public Affairs)
Tech. Sgt. Joseph Lemm (age 45) leaves behind a wife and two children. Lemm was from Bronx, New York and was a fifteen-year veteran of the New York Police Department. Lemm served tours in both Afghanistan and Iraq. He was a newly minted detective in his native Bronx before he lost his life in Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 105th Security Forces Squadron at Stewart Air National Guard Base, New York.
Staff Sgt. Chester McBride
Staff Sgt. Chester J. McBride. (Source: Air Force Public Affairs)
Staff Sgt. Chester McBride (age 30) was from Statesboro, Georgia. A one-time high school football star and state champion, McBride kept close ties with his old coaches. In fact, on the day before he was about to deploy for Afghanistan, one of the last things McBride did was speak to the football team back at his old high school upon his coach’s request.
McBride was assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Detachment 405, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.
Staff Sgt. Louis Bonacasa
Staff Sgt. Louis Bonacasa. (Source: Facebook)
Staff Sgt. Louis Bonacasa was from Coram, New York. Bonacasa was a tried and true veteran of four tours of duty overseas. According to reports, he told his mother he wanted to join the Marines out of high school, however she convinced him to join the Air Force instead. He enlisted in the Air National Guard right after graduating high school. Bonacasa’s mother says that a friend of his who replaced him in a previous tour died, which she believes led him to volunteer for the tour that would eventually take his life.
Bonacasa was assigned to the 105th Security Forces Squadron at Stewart Air National Guard Base, New York. He leaves a wife, who he met in basic training, and a five year-old daughter.
Staff Sgt. Michael Cinco
Staff Sgt. Michael Cinco. (Source: Air Force Public Affairs)
Staff Sgt. Michael Cinco (age 28) was from Mercedes, Texas. He was assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, 11th Field Investigations Squadron, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas.
Staff Sgt. Peter Taub
Staff Sgt. Peter W. Taub. (Source: Air Force Public Affairs)
Staff Sgt. Taub (age 30) was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was the son and brother of a local D.C. family that owns and operates a restaurant called ‘Bub and Pop’s.’ His mother wrote on the restaurant’s Facebook page: “my son, Chef Jon’s brother, Staff Sargeant Peter Taub was one of six killed yesterday in Afghanistan. The restaurant is closed for the rest of this week.” His family apparently was not aware he was in Afghanistan.
He leaves behind a wife, 3 year old and a second child due to be born this coming summer.
He was assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Detachment 816, Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota.
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