The mass shooting at Fort Hood that left 13 dead and more than 30 injured, allegedly at the hands of Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, has left area veterans scratching their heads as to what would cause a soldier to violently turn on his comrades.

"I can't imagine why he did it," said Paul Spera, a Vietnam veteran from Attleboro and former national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Rick Cross, Wrentham's veterans' agent and a Korean War veteran, agreed, saying he never expected such a deadly incident could happen on American soil.

"You don't think it's going to happen here," he said. "It was shocking."

With all the dangers faced by soldiers everyday in war zones, the time spent on military bases at home is meant to be a break from those stresses. It's there that soldiers can gather their thoughts, regroup after returning from war or make final preparations before heading overseas.

Spera said Thursday was supposed to be a period of peace and safety for soldiers at Fort Hood, not a time to watch their backs.

"This was supposed to be down time for them," he said.

"(The shooting) has destroyed that fabric of safety."

He added that Americans across the country should take time to honor the fallen soldiers, whether in private prayers or large events, like the one held Thursday night for Marine Capt. Kyle Van De Giesen, the North Attleboro High grad killed in Afghanistan.

"We need to do what they did (Thursday) night in North Attleboro," he said. "We need to pause and remember."

Sitting in the American Legion Hall in South Attleboro Friday afternoon, Al Cannon, a World War II Navy veteran, said he was shocked when heard the news, and was still trying to make sense of it.

"I never thought something like that would happen on our soil," he said. "It's a terrible, terrible tragedy."