Reid, Nicholas John
Male
Verified Staff Sergeant Nicholas John Reid, 26, of Rochester, New York, was a U.S. Army explosive ordnance disposal specialist. He died on December 13, 2012, at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany from wounds sustained in Afghanistan.
Their Story
Staff Sergeant Nicholas John Reid was a soldier assigned to the 53rd Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal), 3rd Ordnance Battalion, based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington. A native of Rochester, New York, the 26-year-old served as an EOD technician, a role dedicated to the disarming and disposal of improvised explosive devices and other hazardous munitions.
According to U.S. Department of Defense casualty reports, Reid was critically wounded by an improvised explosive device while conducting operations in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, on December 10, 2012. He was medically evacuated to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where he died from his injuries three days later, on December 13.
Reid's death occurred during Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan that began in October 2001. By late 2012, the conflict was in a period characterized by a surge and subsequent drawdown of U.S. forces, with IEDs remaining a persistent and lethal threat to troops conducting patrols and clearance missions.
The Army posthumously promoted Reid to the rank of Staff Sergeant. His death was reported by multiple news outlets in his home state of New York, and he was memorialized in Rochester. He was survived by his wife and other family members.
Staff Sergeant Reid's name is inscribed on the Afghanistan War Memorial at the Rochester Veterans Memorial and is listed on the Defense Casualty Analysis System. As an EOD technician, his role was among the most dangerous in the military, tasked with directly neutralizing the devices responsible for a significant portion of coalition casualties in the war.
Explore Further
Staff Sergeant Reid was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001–2014). The conflict concluded in December 2014. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.
Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.
