Slain Oklahoma Marine awarded medal for heroism

Broken Arrow -The first Oklahoman killed in combat in Iraq has been posthumously honored for saving the lives of nine fellow Marines.<br><br>The ceremony remembering Lance Cpl. Thomas A. Blair was held

Saturday, March 20th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Broken Arrow -The first Oklahoman killed in combat in Iraq has been posthumously honored for saving the lives of nine fellow Marines.

The ceremony remembering Lance Cpl. Thomas A. Blair was held yesterday.

The date comes almost one year after he was shot to death last March 23 in what was described as one of the "fiercest" gunfights of the Iraqi war.

Blair's unit came under fire while trying to seize a bridge in the Iraqi city. He was 24 at the time of his death.

Yesterday, he was presented with a Navy-Marine Corps Commendation Medal Friday at a ceremony in Broken Arrow's Veteran's Park, where a granite memorial to him already stands.

He has previously been awarded a Purple Heart and Combat Action Medal.