The first Iowa woman soldier has been killed in Iraq. Thirty-year-old Jamie Jaenke of Iowa Falls is the 38th Iowa soldier to die in operation Iraqi Freedom since the war began three years ago. Jaenke and another soldier from Roseville, Illinois, both died Monday when a roadside bomb hit their humvee in the Al-Anbar province of Iraq.
Jaenke’s death hasn’t yet been confirmed by military officials. In a statement released by the defense department, military officials acknowledge that two U.S. soldiers died on Monday, but the only victim they identify is 44-year-old Gary Rovinski, the Illinois soldier who was a Petty Officer First Class in the U.S. Navy.
Word of Jaenke’s death comes from the Iowa Falls funeral home that’s handling her arrangements. Jaenke and Rovinski were both U.S. Navy Seabees, assigned to a construction unit.