Fort Riley ? With skies overcast and the noise of a distant artillery practice in the background, several hundred mourners filled a chapel on this Army post to honor five soldiers who died in Iraq.

The service occurred as troops still in Iraq faced the fiercest fighting since Baghdad fell last year. During the ceremony’s quietest moments, the deep rumbling of fire from artillery practice on base could be heard.

The five soldiers, killed March 31 in a roadside bombing, were 1st Lt. Doyle M. Hufstedler, 25, of Abilene, Texas; Spc. Sean R. Mitchell, 24, of Youngsville, Pa.; Spc. Michael G. Karr Jr., 23, of San Antonio; Pfc. Cleston C. Raney, 20, of Rupert, Idaho; and Pvt. Brandon L. Davis, 20, of Cumberland, Md.

Several officers who spoke during the ceremony referred to the ongoing fighting in Iraq.

Lt. Col. Tim Willoughby, chaplain for the Army’s 1st Infantry Division, noted that a year ago, Fort Riley saw its first casualty from the war in Iraq, Sgt. Jacob Butler. Thirty-five of the post’s soldiers have died.

“This has become a familiar experience for us at Fort Riley,” Willoughby said. “It’s painfully familiar, but it certainly has not become routine, nor will it ever be so.”

Hufstedler’s wife, Leslie; Mitchell’s wife, Denise; and an aunt of Raney’s, Gloria Trivitt, attended. They met with Maj. Gen. Dennis Hardy, the post’s commander, before the service began.

Fort Riley soldiers pause before a memorial to five fellow soldiers who were killed in Iraq after a service for the five at Fort Riley. The soldiers are Doyle M. Hufstedler, 25, of Abilene, Texas; Spc. Sean R. Mitchell, 24, of Youngsville, Pa.; Spc. Michael G. Karr Jr., 23, of San Antonio; Pfc. Cleston C. Raney, 20, of Rupert, Idaho; and Pvt. Brandon L. Davis, 20, of Cumberland, Md., were killed March 31 near Fallujah. The service was Wednesday.

The birth of Hufstedler’s first child, a daughter, is expected later this spring.

Willoughby said the soldiers died displaying selfless service to others, which was a godly value before it was an Army value.

“Freedom has a cost. We feel the pain of that cost this morning. We don’t expect young men to die,” he said.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius also attended the service, along with legislators. After the service, Sebelius noted that she was the mother of two sons, ages 19 and 22.

“As I look at these young faces, I think that they could be my young sons or their friends,” she said.

About 4,400 Fort Riley soldiers remain in Iraq. The men who died were members of the 1st Engineer Battalion, 1st Brigade of the 1st Infantry Division. Their unit deployed in September.

The battalion, organized in 1846, has fought in every American war except the Korean War in 1950-53. The 1st Division flag on the altar was adorned with battle ribbons from legendary fights in Sicily and Kasserine Pass during World War II.

The service concluded with a roll call. Sgt. First Class Frederick Wilkins, a member of the 1st Battalion’s rear detachment on post, read the names of his comrades — and was answered by silence.

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Wilkins, a liaison between soldiers and their families, said he was in shock. The battalion has lost 10 soldiers since September but, “You’re still surprised to have soldiers over there die.”

Following the services, soldiers filed to the altar where photographs of the soldiers rested beside five pairs of boots, five M-16 rifles and five tan helmets. Officers and enlisted men paused to offer one final salute, one final prayer.

In all, at least 600 U.S. troops have died in Iraq since the war began March 20, 2003. President Bush declared an end to major combat May 1.