A Fort Wainwright soldier was killed in a single-vehicle accident in Fairbanks, Alaska, Saturday, according to his command.
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Casey A. Popenoe, 39, was traveling on Chena Pump Road, which is about 11 miles from post and runs roughly parallel to Fairbanks International Airport.
The accident is under investigation by local authorities, according to a press release from Army Alaska officials.
Popenoe was a targeting officer with the 2nd Battalion, 8th Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division. He joined the Army in January 2002 and was appointed as a warrant officer in October 2012.
Popenoe served two combat tours in Iraq from December 2003 to February 2005, and from December 2007 to February 2009.
The deceased soldier’s battalion commander, Lt. Col. Gene Palka, called Popenoe “a good man to all who knew him."
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Chief Warrant Officer 3 Casey A. Popenoe," Palka said in a prepared statement. “This tragedy has taken a loved-one much too soon from his family and his friends.”
Popenoe’s awards and decorations include the Combat Action Badge, the Parachutist Badge and the Army Commendation Medal with five oak leaf clusters.
Before arriving in Alaska in June 2017, Popenoe served at Fort Sill, Oklahoma; Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; Fort Lewis, Washington; and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
Kyle Rempfer was an editor and reporter who has covered combat operations, criminal cases, foreign military assistance and training accidents. Before entering journalism, Kyle served in U.S. Air Force Special Tactics and deployed in 2014 to Paktika Province, Afghanistan, and Baghdad, Iraq.
