CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — The Marine Corps late Thursday released the names of some of those wounded in the deadly mortar accident in Nevada.
Five lance corporals, a corporal and a private first class, all of 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, were killed Monday in a mortar explosion during training in Nevada earlier this week, Marine officials said Thursday.
Among those hurt in the accident were Lance Cpl. Sean J. Burke, Lance Cpl. Douglas L. Hand II, Lance Cpl. Myles E. Harris, a Navy corpsman, HM3 Ian S. McClanahan, Sgt. Caleb W. Patton and Chief Warrant Officer Ryan P. West.
The injured were transported to Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno, Nev., for treatment and further evaluation, according to the Marine Corps. McClanahan is considered very seriously injured; Burke, Hand, Harris, Patton and West are seriously injured and two Marines were treated for minor injuries and released. Status updates of those injured will be provided as it becomes available, the news release stated.
Killed were Pfc. Joshua M. Martino, 19, of Clearfield, Pa.; Lance Cpl. David P. Fenn II, 20, of Polk City, Fla.; Lance Cpl. Roger W. Muchnick Jr, 23, of Fairfield, Conn.; Lance Cpl. Joshua C. Taylor, 21, of Marietta, Ohio; Lance Cpl. Mason J. Vanderwork, 21, of Hickory, N.C.; Lance Cpl. William T. Wild IV, 21, of Anne Arundel, Md.; and Cpl. Aaron J. Ripperda, 26, of Madison Ill., after a 60 mm mortar exploded Monday during a live-fire training exercise at Hawthorne Army Depot, Nev.
The Marines had finished a cold-weather training exercise at the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center in Bridgeport, Calif., and were doing live-fire mortar training when one of the mortar systems failed, said Lt. Col. Andrew J. McNulty, commander of 1/9.
Investigators are still trying to determine what caused the failure, he said. In the meantime, the Pentagon has suspended all use of the mortar system until further notice.
Stars and Stripes editor Patrick Dickson contributed to this report.
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