MARK CRIDGECorporal Mark Cridge, who died on 22 March, 2006, at the age of 25, was serving as a technician in Camp Bastion in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.Describe d as an "instantly likeable young man" he was well respected by other soldiers of all ranks.Hard working and enthusiastic, he was a talented sportsman who would always volunteer for his troop, and once enjoyed a mountaineering expedition to Bavaria.His regiment grieves for "a good all round solder," who was hard-working and took his training very seriously.Corporal Mark Cridge was brought up in Barford St Martin, where he went to the village school before moving on to Wilton Middle School and Westwood St Thomas in Salisbury.He joined the Army in April, 2001 and enlisted as a technician.Once he completed his training, he served with three (UK) Divisional Signal Regiment, with whom he was deployed twice on operations to Kuwait and Iraq .He moved to 7 Signal Regiment in the summer of 2005, and was deployed to Afghanistan on 3 March, 2006.His responsibility there was to work as part of a small team to provide communications from Camp Bastion.It was during this duty that Corporal Cridge died, just three weeks short of his 26th birthday.The cause of his death has been under investigation, but the Ministry of Defence said: "Initial inquiries do not indicate hostile action."Lt Col Alan Blackwell, who was Corporal Cridge's Commanding Officer, paid tribute by saying: "Corporal Mark Cridge was an instantly likeable young man. Well respected by all ranks, he was a good all round soldier who clearly enjoyed his trade."Mark was a natural athlete and was always among the first to volunteer to play sport for his Troop or Squadron; he often turned in a good score on the cricket pitch. Last summer he enjoyed a mountaineering expedition to Bavaria with friends from the Regiment."Mark trained hard with the Regiment in preparation for the deployment to Afghanistan and was excited about the tour."Our thoughts are with his family and friends. We have all lost a soldier and friend who was very capable, good company and widely respected."
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