Soldiers who served with Eric O’Hara in Iraq recalled him today as an exemplary colleague who typically rose above and beyond the call of duty.
“He was definitely one of those guys you could always go to if you needed something done,” said Chris Barber, who was in Iraq with O’Hara. “He needed little or no supervision.”
O’Hara, 24, died Thursday in Steamboat Springs when he fell from a six-story hotel rooftop, where he was shoveling snow.
At about 4 p.m. O’Hara was working on the roof of the Steamboat Grand Resort Hotel when a piece of ice he was standing on broke lose.
O’Hara had released a carabiner clip so he could move along a safety rope and slide down the roof without being attached. O’Hara grabbed the rope after sliding over the roof’s edge, but falling snow and ice knocked him loose. He landed on his back on a lower roof and died at the scene.
Representatives of the hotel and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which investigates workplace accidents, did not return phone calls today seeking comment.
A 2002 graduate of Steamboat Springs High School, O’Hara served with the 82nd Airborne Division in Iraq.
“He was the epitome of paratroopers,” said Sgt. Robert Williams, who also served with O’Hara. “He just did an outstanding job on every mission we were asked to do.”
Among those missions with other Red Bull Platoon members in Tikrit, Iraq, were raids on buildings and homes where suspected insurgents were holed up.
“He always wanted to be the first one through the door” Williams said of the dangerous assignments. “When you’re knocking doors down in the middle of Iraq, you never know what you’re going to find on the other side.”
Mike Knezevich, principal of Steamboat High School, recalled O’Hara as a student who struggled with schoolwork but who worked hard to overcome difficulties.
“School didn’t come easy for Eric. He struggled a little bit at times, but he persevered,” Knezevich said. “His desire was to never quit on anything. That laid the foundation for the rest of his life.”
O’Hara served in Iraq for 15 months and was recently released from the Army.
He was living in Centennial and planning to attend the University of Colorado-Boulder with hopes of becoming a stockbroker, Barber said.
O’Hara’s death hit hard those who served with him in combat.
Said Williams: “I’m still just in shock right now.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
