A Fort Stewart spokesman says six soldiers based at Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield have died this week in Afghanistan.

Defense Department officials said Wednesday that 26-year-old Staff Sgt. Rex L. Schad, of Edmond, Okla., was killed Monday by small arms fire in the Jalrez District, west of Kabul. Fort Stewart spokesman Kevin M. Larson says Schad joined the Army in 2006, served in the 3rd Infantry Division and was on his second deployment.

Larson said five other soldiers, all of whom died in a helicopter crash Monday, were also based at Fort Stewart. The Defense Department has yet to release their identities.

The crash outside Kandahar City brought the number of U.S. troops killed Monday to seven, making it the deadliest day for American forces in 2013.

Tags: Fort Stewart, Afghanistan, Georgia soldiers, fallen soldiers