"I would say we're in quite a shock over here," said Lance Cpl. Kevin Vonier, 20, an administration clerk with Headquarters Battalion at Kane'ohe Bay. "Of course, the families and friends are all in shock. These Marines were very loved and cared for over here."

A white Suburban with a bullet-riddled windshield pulled into a Marine convoy near the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah, and the driver detonated a bomb next to a troop-carrying truck, the Christian Science Monitor reported.

"The next thing I know, I saw the explosion," B Company commander Capt. Jer J. Garcia told a Monitor reporter in Iraq. "The Suburban was gone, and my Marines were incinerated."

The Pentagon yesterday identified the dead as:

• Pfc. John Lukac, 19, of Las Vegas, Nev.

• Lance Cpl. Andrew G. Riedel, 19, of Northglenn, Colo.

• Lance Cpl. Jeremy D. Bow, 20, of Lemoore, Calif.

• Lance Cpl. Michael P. Scarborough, 28, of Washington, Ga.

• Lance Cpl. Travis A. Fox, 25, of Cowpens, S.C.

• Cpl. Christopher J. Lapka, 22, of Peoria, Ariz.

• Lance Cpl. John T. Byrd II, 23, of Fairview, W.V.

All were with the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment out of Kane'ohe Bay. An eighth Marine killed in the attack, Sgt. Kelley L. Courtney, 28, of Macon, Ga., was assigned to 1/3, although he is based in Okinawa.

Col. Jeff Patterson, commanding officer of the 3rd Marine Regiment at Kane'ohe Marine Corps Base Hawai'i, said the entire regiment mourns the loss.

None of the deceased had family in Hawai'i but three were married; one wife returned to the Mainland after her husband was deployed to give birth to their child, Patterson said at a news conference yesterday at the base.

The 10 injured Marines are all expected to return to their unit, he said.

Patterson said that as a Marine and the father of a Marine, he personally feels the pain of the families.

"But I can also tell you that (these deaths) only serve to strengthen our resolve and determination to rid the country of terrorists," he said. "I can guarantee the people of Iraq that they will some day be free of terrorists."

The base will have a memorial service at 11 a.m. Monday at the base chapel, Patterson said, adding that the battalion will have services in Iraq today and another service will be held for the unit when it returns in about six months from its seven-month deployment.

Patterson said he has spoken to all the families of the Marines who were killed, and they were proud of their men, he said.

"And as difficult as it is, I can tell you that the 3/3 (3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment) is ready to go out (to Afghanistan)," he said. "They're excited about going out. They want to go out. And I've got another 1,000 Marines standing behind them saying, 'Send me.' "

Nearly 1,000 Hawai'i Marines with the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment arrived about two weeks ago in the Fallujah area. Another approximately 1,000 Hawai'i Marines with the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment are preparing for deployment to Afghanistan in about a week. An advance party of about 80 Marines left tearful families behind Sunday for what they hope is a seven-month tour.

The fatalities Saturday are the first for Hawai'i Marines in Iraq from enemy action. U.S. forces are preparing a major offensive against insurgents in Fallujah and have been attacking the city with air strikes and artillery.

The deaths of so many Hawai'i-based Marines so soon after arriving in Iraq came as a stunning loss.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the Kane'ohe-based Marines, as well as the other soldiers who were killed in last Saturday's attack in Iraq," Gov. Linda Lingle said.

In addition to the eight Marines, 24 soldiers and one civilian with notable Hawai'i ties have died in Iraq, Kuwait or Afghanistan since the start of the war in Iraq in March 2003. Seven of those who died in Afghanistan and nine in Iraq were members of the 25th Infantry Division (Light) based at Schofield Barracks.

Garcia recalled seeing the suicide bomber's face as his convoy passed the Suburban half hidden off the road. By the time Garcia saw the driver and radioed to the convoy, it was too late.

"I looked him right in the eyes — and when he looked down at his steering wheel, I knew something (was coming)," Garcia told the Monitor.

For the families of 1/3 Marines in Hawai'i, the turn of events has been one stunner after another. The Marines deployed to Okinawa in July as part of a routine rotation to the Japanese island.

As the battalion landing team for the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, 1/3 subsequently was tapped for Iraq duty. Only recently did families find out the Marines were operating in the Fallujah area.

Sharon Kostic, whose husband, Maj. Andrew J. Kostic Jr. is executive officer for 1/3, said Marine families here and on the Mainland are on edge.

A "Key Volunteer Network" is in place to provide assistance, but it doesn't notify families of deaths.

"When we do hear about an attack, and the news on Saturday, information is not released to us any earlier than it is released to the public, so you have 1,000 Marines' parents and wives sitting by waiting for that phone call," she said.

After official notification is made, the key volunteers can provide childcare, meals and other forms of support.

Support for the family includes grief counseling, funeral support services, a $12,000 check for immediate expenses and $200,000 for the family, Patterson said.

Kostic, a Marine wife for nine years, said the feeling of invincibility among some Marine families has been stripped away.

"There's always worry but I think with the first death, it hit home with a lot of us and it's changed the tone," she said.