US Marine recruit, 21, dies at South Carolina boot camp during physical fitness test
A 21-year-old Navy recruit at a South Carolina military base died last week during a physical fitness test for boot camp training.
Private First Class Noah Evans died on April 18 aboard the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, an 8,095-acre military base.
It is unclear how the soldier died and in which activity he participated beforehand. Officials also did not disclose whether Evans had any previous medical conditions.
His death is now under investigation, USMC officials said in a news report Edition.
Evans, who was from Decatur, Georgia, was assigned to the Mike Company, a third recruit training battalion.
His death is the fourth at the base in the past two years and the tenth since 2000.
The Marines released a statement expressing their “deepest condolences to Noah’s family and to the Marines and personnel of Mike Co.”
Private First Class Noah Evans, 21, died April 18 while performing a physical fitness test aboard the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, an 8,095-acre military base
Young Marines pictured on Parris Island in South Carolina
Evans’ aunt wrote on Facebook about her late cousin that his “personality could set a room on fire.”
“I still want to believe that this is a dream. I’ve looked at all the messages and said it just can’t be true.’
A celebration of life will be held for the young soldier all week with a visit to the family’s home in Ellenwood, Georgia.
There will be a viewing and vigil at Gregory B. Levett & Sons Funeral Home on Friday, followed by burial at First Iconium’s Baptist Church and burial at Kennedy Memorial Gardens on Sunday.
His death comes two years after 19-year-old Private First Class Dalton Beals of Pennsville, New Jersey died of hyperthermia in June 2021, according to multiple reports.
Beals was part of Echo Company, Platoon 2040, on Parris Island.
The young soldier completed the final challenge for recruits, known as The Crucible, the final part of a rigorous 54-hour workout that tests physical strength, skills and the values of the Marine Corps, on Parris Island, Marines said at the time.
According to the Beaufort Gazette the exercise includes a 48-mile journey over 54 hours with 45 pounds of gear, 36 stations, and problem-solving exercises with four to six hours of sleep and limited food.
The Crucible ends with a nine-mile hike during which the recruits have only “a limited amount of food and sleep,” according to the website.
The day Beals died, the temperature at the base was in the 90s, the Gazette said.
Two Marine recruits participate in a climbing activity during boot camp at the Marine Corp Recruit Depot on Parris Island, South Carolina in this undated photo
This undated photo shows seven Marine recruits climbing ropes during boot camp training at the Marine Corp Recruit Depot in Parris Island, South Carolina
US Marine Corp recruits pictured at a graduation ceremony in Parris Island, South Carolina
According to an investigative report obtained by the Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette, policies are in place when temperatures rise, requiring the young recruits to change uniforms and equipment.
Beals’ drill instructor, Staff Sgt. However, Steven Smiley would have only intensified the training instead.
The report alleged that Beals’ fellow recruits described being discouraged from seeking medical attention and being mocked when they did.
Smiley was later charged with negligent homicide over Beals’ death in November 2022.
On September 29, 2021, 26 year old Brandon Barnisof Evans, Georgia, was found dead in the training depot, according to the Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette.
That same month, another recruit, Private Anthony Muñoz, 21, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, died after falling from a balcony in what was considered an “apparent suicide,” MCRD Parris Island officials previously told Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette.