Val J. Borm dies 'of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle'

An Army soldier from Sidney died in Iraq this week when a bomb exploded near the Humvee he was riding in, according to his family.

Larry Borm of Sidney said Friday afternoon that his son Val John Borm, 21, died in Iraq's Kirkuk province after the explosion.

Borm was serving as an infantryman in B Company, 2nd Battalion with the 35th Infantry. The unit is based at Fort Shafter, Hawaii.

The military reported Friday that three U.S. soldiers died when a bomb exploded near their vehicle Thursday during operations in Kirkuk province, in northern Iraq. Another soldier was wounded in the blast.

The military did not release the names of the soldiers killed or wounded in the explosion, so their families could be notified first.

Borm graduated from Sidney High School in 2005 and enlisted in the Army in August 2005.

Borm's father said his son enjoyed his Army service. Borm said his son liked to play computer games in his free time, and the younger Borm was also an avid paintball competitor.

Borm is survived by his father, mother Lolita and younger sister Kimberly.

Borm is the 49th service member with Nebraska connections killed in either Iraq or Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001.

And Borm was the second Nebraskan to die in Iraq this week. Army Spc. Adam Herold, 23, of Omaha, Neb., died in Iraq on Sunday in an explosion.

From the Sioux City Journal