A soldier who was killed Saturday in Afghanistan was the 36th death in 2012 from troops based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

The Defense Department says 20-year-old Pfc. Markie T. Sims of Citra, Fla., was killed by a roadside bomb.

He was part of the 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team that deployed in November and is due to return in August to the base near Tacoma.

The News Tribune reports ( http://bit.ly/UmGpoI) Sims is the unit's third fatality during the deployment.

The 36 deaths in 2012 mark the deadliest year for Lewis-McChord soldiers since 2009 when 39 were killed. The deadliest year in the decade was 2007 when 92 Lewis-McChord soldiers lost their lives during the Iraq War surge.

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Information from: The News Tribune, http://www.thenewstribune.com