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Heartbreaking! Slain Black Hawk crash victim Caleb Gore's wife pregnant with their first child

Caleb had spent over 13 years as a service member of the Army, with 11 of those years serving as a sergeant

TRIGG COUNTY, KENTUCKY: Caleb Gore was one among the nine victims killed after two US Army Blackhawk helicopters crashed during a routine training mission in Kentucky on Wednesday, March 29. "The accident occurred at approximately 10 p.m. when the two helicopters were conducting a planned training exercise in and around the local Fort Campbell training area," a release from the 101st Airborne Division said Thursday.

Although the army did not release the identity of the nine victims killed in the crash, Pastor Tim Gore of Fremont Missionary Baptist Church in North Carolina shared one of the fallen soldiers was his son Caleb Gore. The father revealed on Facebook that his son and his wife Haleigh were expecting their first child when the ill-fated tragedy occurred. Following the helicopter crash, "The Army has deployed an aviation safety team from Fort Rucker, Ala., to conduct a thorough investigation into the accident," the 101st Airborne Division statement added.

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Who was Caleb Gore?

Caleb had spent over 13 years as a service member of the Army, with 11 of those years served as a sergeant, according to his LinkedIn profile. "My precious son Caleb was killed in a tragic helicopter accident last night. He was the light of my world, and I have no words to express my grief right now," wrote Tim. "My words are my tears right now. Please pray for us all."

"My son and his precious wife were expecting and it is a boy. He will be here in about 6 months," he said. "She was my son's childhood love, so the grief of the moment stretches pretty deep right now." Tim also remembered his son as a "hero." "Not just in the sense that he was in the army but just who he was as a person," he remarked. "He was a tank. He was literally a tank. If Captain America walked in the door, that's exactly what I would think he would look like."

Following the tragedy, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said the community would come together to support each other after the crash. "We’re going to do what we always do, we’re going to wrap our arms around these families, and we’re going to be there with them, not just for the days but the weeks and months and years to come," Beshear said in a news conference, reported The Sun. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth also said it has been "a heavy day for the Army" during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday. "Thank you for your comments and thoughts and prayers for the families of our soldiers who were killed in the crash. Our hearts go out to them,” Wormuth added.

'Praying for this family!'

Internet users were devasted by the tragedy and forwarded their prayers for Caleb and all the fallen soldiers. One user sympathized, "Ughhh, absolutely heartbreaking!! RIP #hero!!" Another added, "My heart is breaking for this family and all the other families involved. It's incapacitating to even imagine getting that call." A third said, "This is just so so sad. Prayers for the Gore family and all the other 8 families that lost a loved one in this tragedy." A fourth tweeted, "Praying for this family. Another chimed, "condolences to the family."

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