Summary
The U.S. military said Thursday that a Marine died after falling overboard during operations in the Caribbean, and it also reported a separate collision between Navy ships that left two sailors with minor injuries. The Marine Corps identified the service member as Lance Cpl. Chukwuemeka E. Oforah of Florida and said the incident occurred aboard the USS Iwo Jima.
In its announcement made Saturday, the Marine Corps said Oforah had fallen from the amphibious assault ship. The military said it carried out what it described as an extensive, around-the-clock 72-hour search and rescue operation using Navy ships, aircraft and an Air Force Reaper drone, and that Oforah was later declared dead Tuesday.
The service member’s death marked a rare moment for publicly reported fatalities in connection with the current U.S. military operation in the region, according to the account from the U.S. military. The reporting also placed the incidents within the broader context of the U.S. military’s large force posture in the Caribbean, including multiple amphibious assault ships carrying thousands of Marines and the presence of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford.
Separately, U.S. Southern Command said the destroyer USS Truxtun and the supply ship USNS Supply collided as Truxtun was getting a new load of supplies. Southern Command said two personnel reported minor injuries and that both were in stable condition, adding that both ships were sailing safely after the incident.
The collision occurred during a replenishment maneuver that the military described as typically done with the vessels sailing parallel, while fuel and supplies are transferred across the gap via hoses and cables. A U.S. official familiar with the collision, speaking on condition of anonymity because the mishap was under investigation, said the supply ship was refueling the cruiser USS Gettysburg while the Truxtun approached from the other side.
The Truxtun left its home port in Norfolk, Virginia, on Feb. 3, and the destroyer returned to port for several days for an “emergent equipment repair” before departing again on Feb. 6, according to a Navy official who also spoke on condition of anonymity regarding operational details. The Wall Street Journal first reported the collision, described as rare for warships, and the Navy’s last known collision reported in the account involved the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman and a merchant vessel near the Suez Canal.