Navy reports drownings | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

WASHINGTON – Two U.S. Navy SEALs drowned while trying to climb aboard a ship illegally transporting Iranian-made weapons to Yemen because they suffered glaring deficiencies in training and did not understand what was happening, a military official said Falling into deep, turbulent waters is an investigation into the deaths in January.

The review concluded that the drownings of Chief Special Warfare Operator Christopher J. Chambers and Navy Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Nathan Gage Ingram could have been prevented. But both quickly sank at sea off the coast of Somalia, weighed down by the heavy equipment they were carrying and unaware or ignoring concerns that their flotation devices could not accommodate the extra weight. Both were lost at sea.

The highly critical and heavily redacted report – written by a Navy officer outside the Naval Special Warfare Command, which oversees the SEALs – concluded that there were “deficiencies, gaps and inconsistencies” in training, policies, tactics and procedures, as well as ” conflicting instructions about when and how to use emergency flotation devices and additional buoyancy equipment that could have kept them alive.

The mission’s aim was to intercept weapons aimed at Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis, who have been carrying out rocket and drone attacks on merchant vessels and US Navy vessels in the Red Sea since the Israel-Hamas war began in Gaza a year ago and started in the Gulf of Aden. U.S. retaliation has not deterred its attacks so far.

Chambers and Ingram, members of SEAL Team 3, died during a nighttime mission aboard an unflagged ship in the Arabian Sea. Their names were redacted from the report, but officials have confirmed that Chambers slipped and fell as he climbed onto the ship’s deck and Ingram jumped in to try to save him.

“Stressed by the weight of each individual’s equipment, neither their physical capabilities nor additional emergency flotation devices, if activated, were sufficient to keep them afloat,” Rear Adm. Michael DeVore wrote in the report.

Properly maintained, well-functioning and properly used swimming equipment could have kept her afloat until she was rescued, the report said. Other team members told investigators that while they knew the importance of their tactical flotation system — which includes two inflatable floats that attach to a belt and foam pads that can be added — few in training ever operated one and there are few instructions on how to wear it.

The report said the team was operating in 6 to 8 feet of water, and while the ship they boarded rolled in the waves, the conditions were well within their capabilities.

As time passed, however, the rolling became more violent and Chambers attempted to get on board by jumping from the engine compartment of his fighting vehicle onto the top rail of the ship they were boarding, the report said. Some of the commandos used an attachable ladder, but because of the waves, others jumped onto the top railing, which was within reach but slippery.

Chambers’ hands slipped from the railing and he fell 9 feet into the water. According to a video of the operation, he was able to hold on to the bottom rung of the ladder, but as he turned to return to the combat vehicle, he was swept away by a wave.

Eleven seconds after his fall, Ingram jumped in. Video shows they were intermittently above water for at least ten seconds and were at times able to grab a submerged ladder extension. But both were knocked over by the waves. The last sighting of Chambers occurred about 26 seconds after his fall.

At one point, Ingram tried to climb back up the ladder but was overcome by a wave. He appeared to attempt to deploy his flotation device, but within two seconds an unattached water wing was seen about a foot away from him. He also appeared to attempt to remove some of his equipment, but slipped underwater and was not seen again. The depth of the sea was about 12,000 feet.

Both were wearing body armor and Ingram was also wearing radio equipment that weighed up to 40 pounds more. Each of the inflatable floats can lift at least 40 pounds in seawater, the report said.

Chambers, 37, of Maryland, enlisted in the Navy in 2012 and completed SEAL training in 2014. Ingram, 27, from Texas, enlisted in 2019 and completed SEAL training in 2021.

In response to the investigation, Naval Special Warfare Command said changes to training and instruction were already being made. It said the command is considering developing a force-wide policy to ensure water safety during operations at sea and establishing standard operating procedures for buoyancy requirements.