A young sailor died by suicide.
asserted
sailor → die → suicide
Her family blames health care gaps and long deployment
Jaimie Bethea took hundreds of photographs during her 11 months on the USS Fort Lauderdale, images that show a keen eye and add up to a kind of visual diary of daily life while deployed at sea.
asserted
that → blame → sea
But a month before the USS Fort Lauderdale returned to Norfolk, Va., in July, the 21-year- old Navy communications specialist died by suicide.
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specialist → return → suicide
"Nothing matters to me more than my sister," Arianna Calderon, her older sister, told NPR.
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Calderon → matter → NPR
"Nothing ever has.
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Nothing → have → ?
I lost my world, genuinely.
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I → lose → world
I lost everything, and all I care about now is getting some semblance of justice."
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I → lose → justice
The mission included the capture of Nicholas Maduro and ongoing attacks on boats in the region suspected of carrying drugs, along with earthquake relief.
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mission → include → relief
"It was constantly like getting texts like, 'Guys, you'll never f***ing believe it.
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you → get → it
We just got extended again,' and I think it happened four times.
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it → extend → ?
It's just that uncertainty and promises unfulfilled," Calderon said.
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Calderon → say → ?
Calderon said they lost their mother three months before the ship deployed.
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ship → say → mother
Bethea was given shore duty for a month and she watched her mother die of cancer in a South Carolina hospital.
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mother → give → hospital
She sought help and the Navy put her on antidepressants.
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Navy → seek → antidepressants
"Within a few months into her deployment, she was having nightmares about our mom.
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she → have → mom
Definitely, I mean, I'm not a psychologist, but she was definitely experiencing symptoms of PTSD," Bethea's sister said.
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sister → mean → PTSD
The Navy has acknowledged that there has been suicide attempts among sailors, while contending with a pace that has pushed ships into deployments that have lasted nearly a year.
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that → acknowledge → deployments
Recently, the carrier USS Abraham Lincoln began its journey back to San Diego after spending over eight months at sea during the war with Iran, all without a port visit.
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carrier → begin → visit
The Navy confirmed one person jumped overboard, before being rescued.
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person → confirm → ?
NPR has not confirmed media reports that other sailors attempted suicide.
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sailors → confirm → suicide
While carriers and large amphibious ships have dedicated mental health staff on board, most Navy ships do not.
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ships → have → board
The USS Fort Lauderdale relies instead on a doctor and Navy corpsmen for all its medical care.
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Lauderdale → rely → care
Chaplains also receive some training, including in the Navy's protocol for suicide prevention.
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Chaplains → receive → prevention
Tiana Cook met Bethea while the two were in marching band together in high school.
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two → meet → school
Cook said the two continued to talk and text nearly every day while Bethea was on the USS Fort Lauderdale.
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Bethea → say → Lauderdale
Bethea complained that supplies were tight and she couldn't get her medication consistently during the deployment to the Caribbean, Cook said.
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Cook → complain → Caribbean
"She would tell me a lot about days where she would just cry when she woke up all a lot, and she would take a lot of naps too from just being exhausted and sad," Cook added in an interview with NPR.
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Cook → tell → NPR
According to a string of texts throughout her deployment to friends and family reviewed by NPR, Bethea wrote that she had been having a panic attack that lasted hours and sought medical help on board.
uncertain
that → accord → board
In another text she told friends and family she was surprised how easy it was to walk away from the ship's hospital.
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it → tell → hospital
"The last text she sent was around 12:30 a.m., and she said, "I love you guys.
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I → send → guys
I need you to know that.
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you → need → that
That was the last I heard from her," Cook said.
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Cook → hear → her
She was found early in the morning on June 20.
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She → find → June
After her death, Cook and say one of her friends on the ship told her and the family that Bethea had previously attempted suicide three months into the deloyment.
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Bethea → say → deloyment
Calderon says the Navy should have done more.
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Navy → say → more
They should have removed her from the ship," Calderon said.
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Calderon → remove → ship
The Navy has not responded to a list of questions about Bethea's death.
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Navy → respond → death
A 2023 Department of Defense Inspector General's report cited a severe shortage in mental health professionals throughout the Navy, including on board ships.
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report → cite → ships
After a cluster of suicides on board the carrier USS George Washington in 2022, the Navy vowed to deploy more mental health counselors and practitioners, at least among its larger ships.
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Navy → vow → ships
After questions emerged about mental health issues on USS Lincoln during its extended deployment in the Middle East, Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao announced a new Suicide Prevention Task Force to take yet another look at Navy practices.
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Cao → emerge → practices
…and 7 more, not listed.
The Aporia
