Layne Morris, a member of a Special Forces team and the manager of West Valley City's housing authority, was injured in the eye Saturday during a firefight in Afghanistan.
Sgt. 1st Class Morris is with the Utah Army National Guard's Bravo Co., 19th Special Forces.
According to the Defense Department, five service members were wounded in an ambush July 27 when a reconnaissance mission came under small-arms fire about 7 miles east of Khowst. Initial reports said two Afghan militia members were killed in the ambush.
Morris, a resident of South Jordan, "sustained grenade shrapnel injury to his right eye in the firefight," said Lt. Col. Craig V. Morgan, Utah National Guard spokesman. "Subsequent to that, he was medically evacuated, stabilized, and almost immediately transported to an eye trauma center in Germany."
The center is in Hamburg. Morris' wife, Leisl, has left to join him in Germany, say co-workers.
The sergeant was listed in serious condition when evacuated to Germany, according to the Pentagon. Whether vision will return in his right eye is "difficult to determine at this time," said Morgan.
In the worst-case scenario, he could lose the eye. "But we're doing everything we can to make sure that doesn't happen," he said. He said the military always wants to provide the best care possible when members of the armed forces are injured.
Bravo Co. is based in Springville, while the larger 19th Special Forces is headquartered in Salt Lake City. About 50 Utahns who are members of the 19th went overseas in early December. Some are stationed in Afghanistan, some in Kuwait.
The Special Forces is an elite military group that trains for many contingencies, including covert operations, teaching in foreign countries and humanitarian assistance. It is highly trained and capable of handling a variety of challenges.
"We don't have a unit designed to look in caves," said Morgan, so when the search for terrorists takes Americans to caves in Afghanistan, the Special Forces is called upon.
Wayne Pyle, assistant city manager for West Valley City, said Morris is dedicated, intelligent and professional. The two are friends, sharing both employment and the fact that they are part-time soldiers. While Morris is in the National Guard, Pyle is in a Reserve unit based at Fort Douglas.
"He's obviously in pretty good shape to be in a Special Forces team," Pyle said. "He likes to play basketball. . . . He's just a real gregarious, really friendly person."
Morris and Pyle have talked about America's defense, he said, and Morris is a patriot. "He served 19 years in the National Guard, and obviously you don't do that without a lot of commitment to your country and wanting to serve."
In West Valley City, Morris once headed the code enforcement department, in which city officials try to make sure structures meet safety codes. He was good at getting people to respond, said Pyle. "He was able to work with them without alienating them."
"Layne's a great man," said John Patterson, city manager for West Valley City. In code enforcement, "he displayed great skill and ability, and so as he pursued his master's and got his master's degree, we promoted him again."
Now Morris is housing authority director and in charge of a major project whose worth Patterson estimates at about $50 million. He is a leader, he added.
"People respect him because of his moral and physical courage. He has a great sense of humor."
Patterson said Morris believed in what he was doing in Afghanistan and is a true patriot. "He felt he was making the world a safer place."
"Witty and clever," is the way Joseph Moore, director of community and economic development for the city, describes Morris.
"Lane is an upbeat guy that's got a great sense of humor. . . . He's very good with people."
Morgan noted that the members of the Guard's 19th Special Forces are part-time soldiers, but they are not just fill-ins. They are on the line, and Morris' injury brings the war home to Utah.
"He's somebody's neighbor . . . and he's over taking live fire on a weekly basis," Morgan said.
"We have friends and neighbors, all of us, that are over there in harm's way." He said the National Guard is very proud of them.
E-mail: bau@desnews.com