Hansen Kirkpatrick, Teen U.S. Soldier, Killed In Afghanistan: 'He Always Had My Back'

WASILLA, AK — Hansen Bradee Kirkpatrick, a 19-year-old U.S. Army soldier from a small town near Anchorage who was recently deployed to Afghanistan from his military base in Fort Bliss, Texas, died Monday in the war-torn country's southeastern Helmand Province "from wounds received during an indirect fire attack," according to the U.S. Department of Defense. Two other soldiers were wounded in the same attack but are expected to live.

Pfc. Kirkpatrick's tragic death on the eve of Independence Day is still under investigation, officials said Wednesday.

Sign up here to receive email newsletters and breaking news alerts from the Anchorage Patch.

The teen soldier was remembered as "caring, disciplined and intelligent" by Maj. James Bithorn, the head of his Texas-based brigade. "He will be missed greatly by his fellow soldiers and leaders alike," Bithorn said in a statement.

Now, counting the Alaska teen, seven American soldiers have died in combat in Afghanistan so far this year. Three were killed in the month of June alone.

Kirkpatrick's loved ones shared their shock and grief online.

"This is unreal to me," Jacob Kinnett, 22, Kirkpatrick's bunkmate from back when the two attended infantry school in Fort Benning, Georgia, wrote on Facebook when he learned his friend was killed.

"I'm in tears honestly," Kinnett wrote. "You were one of the most down to earth dudes I've ever met in my 22 years on this planet."

After one year of training in Texas at an "intense operational tempo," according to army officials, Kirkpatrick was sent abroad near the end of January as part of Operation Freedom's Sentinel.

The operation was launched in early 2015 as the "counterterrorism" arm of Operation Resolute Support — the Obama administration's followup to more than a decade of all-out war under the Bush administration's Operation Enduring Freedom. Troops would be instructed to target "the remnants of Al-Qaeda," then-Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said at the time, "to ensure that Afghanistan is never again used to stage attacks against our homeland.”

In recent months, however, the operation's focus has reportedly shifted from Al-Qaeda to the Islamic State.

All the soldiers who died before Kirkpatrick this year were involved in fighting ISIS "in its stronghold in a small eastern area of the country," the New York Times reported last month. (And "five of the six may have been killed by their own side.")

According to CNN, the Taliban has also "managed to reestablish a significant presence" in the Helmand Province this year. Hundreds of American soldiers have reportedly been deployed to the province to "train, advise and assist" Afghan security forces.

"I can't believe it," Zachary Jackson, another of Kirkpatrick's fellow soldiers, wrote online Wednesday.

Jackson said he remembered "the times we had in 2nd platoon back in basic and our random conversations we had [shifts]" — and said he'd "give anything up for one more day of that stuff with you."

Kinnett, Kirkpatrick's former bunkmate in Georgia, told Patch over text message that his friend "was known for having the craziest/funniest stories to tell." (And Jakob Faith, another of Kirkpatrick's friends from his time in Georgia, confirmed as much: "I will never forget the late night stories at Fort Benning and the Alaskan tales we always heard from you," he wrote in his own tribute post on Facebook.)

But at the same time, Kinnett told us, Kirkpatrick "was the one you'd go to... if you ever needed to have a heart to heart or get something off your chest."

"He never had anything bad to say about anyone," Kirpatrick's bunkmate said. "All he wanted to do was be everyone's friends, no matter how they treated him."

Kinnett shared his favorite memory of the fallen soldier:

"During our training at mortar square we were sleeping in the field and he had previously had his sleep system stolen. It was raining that night so he basically froze the entire night, but not once did he ask for anyone's equipment. Him and I had guard for the two hours before wake up, which is the sh-- everyone hates. So instead of waking him up I packed up my ruck, threw my sleep system on him and covered him in my poncho. I had someone else cover his guard shift, explaining the situation. They more than kindly accepted. When he woke up realizing he 'missed' his shift he was spazzing out because if you miss those shifts and get caught, the entire company pays. Then he realized he was in a sleep system and my ruck was packed. He came to me at chow and was like thanks man, you didn't have to do that.' I was like it's no problem, you'd do that for somebody too.' And he replied with 'yeah no sh-- Kinnett. Who do you think keeps making your bed before first formation because you're still in the bathroom shaving?' I was notorious for not getting out of bed right away causing me to speed through my morning routine. We would all make each other's beds if needed.. but Kirkpatrick always had my back and never even told me, never wanted a thank you. He just did it because that's how you treat the ones you love and care about."

May he rest in peace.

Lead photo courtesy of USAG Fort Bliss