Pennsylvania flags lowered to honor Marines killed in action

HARRISBURG – Flags at the Pennsylvania Capitol and other state buildings will fly at half-staff to honor three U.S. Marines who have ties to the state and were killed in the line of duty.

Gov. Tom Wolf on Thursday ordered the flags lowered through sunset Sunday. Two of the Marines were killed in a roadside bombing in Afghanistan on Monday. The parents of Staff Sgt. Christopher Slutman live in the York area, and 31-year-old Sgt. Benjamin Hines was from the York area.

More:Two Marines with York County ties killed in Afghanistan

The third Marine, a pilot, died March 30 in a helicopter crash during training at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma in Arizona. He was identified as Maj. Matthew Wiegand of Ambler.

In a statement, Wolf says gratitude should be shown every day to soldiers like Wiegand, Hines and Slutman.