FORT DRUM — A 10th Mountain Division soldier will be the 17th honored with the Distinguished Service Cross since the beginning of the global war on terror. The award is the second-highest in the Army.

Staff Sgt. Travis W. Atkins was 31 when he was killed on June 1, 2007, when he tackled a suicide bomber in Iraq. Sgt. Travis absorbed the blast, saving members of his unit.

He was with the 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, stationed in southwest Baghdad. He was one of 52 soldiers from 2nd Brigade who died during the deployment to the area known by soldiers as the Triangle of Death.

The ceremony will be Nov. 7 at Fort Drum as part of the installation's Veterans Day celebrations.