WAHIAWA — For folks in this military community, where tragic news from Iraq has arrived all too often, the deaths of 10 Schofield Barracks soldiers was particularly tough.

It was the largest number of Schofield soldiers killed in one incident since the Vietnam War.

"I might have known one of those soldiers," said former Schofield sergeant major Tom Hrdlicka, 74. "I probably do know one of them."

Schofield officials announced yesterday morning the news of the deadly helicopter crash in Iraq.

Pvt. Sara Baker said she and her fellow soldiers were shocked and held a moment of silence after hearing the announcement.

Baker said she first wondered if she knew any of the soldiers who were killed.

"That's the first thing that pops in your head, and then the second thing is the families," she said. "That's the worst part, knowing that their families will never get to see them again."

'CALL SOMEONE'

Baker said her unit is in Iraq now.

"I just got back from Iraq last week, and my whole unit is still there, so I just looked at my friend that came back early with me and I was, like, 'Oh my goodness.'"

"All our friends are still there ... so everyone was real quiet and real worried" after the announcement, Baker said. She and other soldiers were encouraged to call their families.

"Sergeant Major said, 'Sometime today, call your family. Call someone that loves you and tell them you're OK.'"

She immediately called her father in Arkansas.

Hrdlicka, the former Schofield sergeant major, said the news was hard on the Wahiawa community and will get worse as the identities of those killed are confirmed.

While the military had not released the names of the victims as of late yesterday, seven of the 14 had been identified through hometown media reports.

'TRAINED TO COPE'

Hrdlicka said the pain will be compounded by the fact that the dead soldiers would have started returning to Hawai'i next month.

"This will take a big toll on the community. It will be a hardship. These soldiers were a part of this community."

The loss of 10 Schofield soldiers leaves a tremendous void.

"This many guys from one unit — that's a pretty heavy price to pay," said Army Capt. Matt Kennedy, 37, from the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry, who happened to be in Wahiawa with his son Brandon, 6, to pick up patches for the boy's Cub Scout uniform.

"How is this going to affect this community? How is this going to affect their own communities?"

Kennedy, who lives in Mililani and has served in Iraq, said the Schofield deaths illustrate the importance of defining what has to be accomplished in the war-ravaged Middle Eastern country.

"What is the end state?" he said. "And how do we achieve it? Let's find it and then achieve it. And that's to have a fully functioning government with a security force capable of defending its own nation."

Sgt. James Barton said the main focus is on supporting the soldiers and the families.

"It's a tragedy that we all have to deal with," Barton said of the helicopter crash. "It's sad that it happened, and we're all trained to cope and deal and support families."

LIKE FAMILY

The news also left Michael Fuse, owner of Michael's Barber Shop in Wahiawa, wondering who the soldiers were.

About 70 percent of his customers are military personnel, and he knows some soldiers by name.

"Whenever you hear of a soldier getting killed ... you wonder who it was and you hope that it wasn't a person (whose hair) you were cutting six months ago or three months ago," he said. "You hope that it's not somebody you're friends with.

"Whenever there's a loss at Schofield, people here definitely feel the loss and sadness for the families."

Ashlyn Kaleiwohi, a cashier and waitress at Molly's Texas BBQ in Wahiawa, over the years has befriended many soldiers, who she said have become like family. Throughout the war, she has learned to live with hearing about soldiers losing their lives, but the loss of so many soldiers at one time was a bigger shock to take.

"It affects all of us," she said. "It's sad, because look at these families that don't have their loved ones no more."

Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com and Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.