Trumansburg, N.Y. - A Central New York community is mourning the loss of a soldier.
The military says 24-year-old Sergeant James Johnston and another soldier died in action earlier this week during a firefight with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Their deaths bring the total number of Americans killed in Afghanistan this year to 11.
Governor Cuomo has ordered all flags at state government buildings be lowered in tribute to Sergeant Johnston, who is from Trumansburg. “On behalf of all New Yorkers, I extend our sympathy to the friends, family, and fellow soldiers of Sgt. Johnston,” Cuomo said in a statement. “His death is a reminder of the sacrifices members of the military make to protect the freedoms and the values that this state and this nation were founded upon.”
Johnston’s family plans to collect his remains at Dover Air Force Base and have him buried in Texas.