Twentynine Palms Marine dies of flesh-eating disease

A Marine stationed at Twentynine Palms died just eight hours after a flesh-eating disease diagnosis, officials said.

Pfc. William Becket Kiernan, 18, died of a bacterial skin infection known as necrotizing fasciitis on Feb. 4.

No additional cases of necrotizing fasciitis have been reported at the Marine Corps base, Capt. Karen Holliday told Marine Corps Times.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “confirms that necrotizing fasciitis is not communicable,” Holliday said. “The most common way of getting necrotizing fasciitis is when the bacteria enter the body through a break in the skin. This can include cuts, scrapes, burns, insect bites or puncture wounds.”

The Marine was training to become a radio field operator, his mother, Lynda Drennan Kiernan, told the Boston Globe.

A wake will be at the Saunders-Dwyer Funeral Home in Mattapoisett, Massachusetts, on Thursday, with a funeral Mass Friday at 9:30 a.m. at St. Anthony’s Church.

“He was an avid reader, and studied military history,” his mother told the Staten Island Advance. “His goal was to be a Marine, and he achieved that.”

More In Your Marine Corps

Colin Firth to star as MI5 agent in WWII movie ‘Operation Mincemeat’

The movie will premiere in the U.K. in January 2022.

‘Accountability’ Marine gets light sentence; judge blasts command

The judge said the videos showed a man who appeared “to be in pain,” “confused” and “significantly frustrated,” rather than a rogue and potentially-violent Marine.

Day 1 of outspoken Marine’s trial brings guilty plea and political sideshow

“I am being held accountable for my actions," Scheller said. "The general officers should be held accountable for their failures."

Navy will reevaluate discharge upgrade applications for sailors, Marines with PTSD, TBI, other conditions

Decisions from the Naval Discharge Review Board since March 2, 2012, will automatically be reviewed if the applicant didn’t receive an upgrade to honorable discharge. Sailors and Marines who were separated before that time can reapply.

‘Mixed reality’ goggle program is trying to fix a field-of-view problem

Moisture and slight distortion found in recent evaluations called for more work.

In Other News

First lady says more money needed to fight hunger in military families

The House version of the defense policy bill would create a “basic needs allowance” to supplement troops with a household income of less than 130 percent of the federal poverty line.

Air Force scrubbed hijacking claim from news release after CENTCOM disputed story

After a CNN article reported that CENTCOM disputed an Air Force press release that claimed there had been an attempted hijacking during the HKIA evacuations, the press release was scrubbed of any mention of the incident.

China, Russia launch joint naval drills in Russian Far East

China and Russia are united in opposing the dominant U.S. influence in global affairs.

It’s time to focus on treating ‘invisible wounds’ of veterans, advocates say

The Cohen Veterans Bioscience Veterans Advisory Council calls for action on treating "invisible wounds" of war for veterans.

‘Forever chemicals’ detected in groundwater from 13 DoD sites in Gulf of Mexico

Groundwater from 13 Department of Defense sites in the Gulf of Mexico has been confirmed to contain high levels of "forever chemicals."

Load More