10/15/06 First Information

At around 5pm on Sunday, October 15th, my mom and dad received a call from the Marine Corp that Josh had been injured in combat. When the Marines arrived, they informed them that Josh's humvee had been struck by an IED (improvised explosive device) outside the Al Anbar province. Three of the four marines were killed instantly in the explosion, Josh, the only survivor had both legs traumatically amputated by the explosion. He sustained a concussion of unknown grade and a laceration to the chin.

Initial reports said he was taken to Fallujah surgical center and then later transferred to Balad, Iraq hospital where they had better surgical care.

We are receiving very little information but they hope to have him moved to Germany where we will be able to get better information.

We do not know of his conscious state or any further injuries. We only know that he is alive and we pray to have him home soon.

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers and we will continue to keep this updated as we get information.

Julie Allen (Josh's sister)