North Carolina sailor dead after falling overboard, Navy says

Associated Press

2 years ago

FILE - In this Sept. 6, 2019 file photo, the U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Lassen (DDG-82) moors at Fort Trumbull State Park in New London, Conn. The Navy is proposing construction cutbacks and accelerated ship retirements that would delay, or sink, the Navy’s goal of a larger fleet — and potentially hurt shipyards, according to an initial proposal. The proposal would shrink the size of the fleet from today’s level of 293 ships to 287 ships, a far cry from the official goal of 355 ships established in the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day via AP, File)

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina native assigned to a guided missile destroyer was lost overboard and presumed dead in the Baltic Sea, according to the U.S. Navy.

Seaman Recruit David L. Spearman went overboard on Monday from the USS Arleigh Burke, according to a news release. A search effort near Helsinki, Finland, was called off earlier in the week.

The Navy said he had reported to the ship in April after training in Illinois.

“This bright, young man made an oversized, positive impact on Arleigh Burke, said Cmdr. Pete Flynn, the ship’s commanding officer. “My entire crew’s thoughts and prayers are with Seaman Recruit Spearman’s family and friends. We offer our most sincere condolences for their loss.”

WLOS-TV reports that Spearman was a 19-year-old from Etowah in western North Carolina’s Henderson County. The family told the TV station that several generations of his family had served in the Navy.

The Navy didn’t release further details about what happened.