Navy SEALs Drownings in Raid at Sea Were Preventable Investigation Finds

Two U.S. Navy SEALs drowned while attempting to board a ship carrying weapons to Yemen due to training failures, a military investigation has found.
Christopher J. Chambers and Nathan Gage Ingram died in the high seas off Somalia in January.
They had been on a mission to intercept dangerous materials headed to the Iranian-backed Houthi militants in Yemen.
Ingram jumped into the water after noticing his teammate struggling to stay afloat.
The pair sank quickly in turbulent waters, weighed down by heavy gear, including body armor and radio devices weighing tens of extra pounds.
A heavily redacted report, revealed “deficiencies, gaps and inconsistencies” in the Navy’s training, policies, tactics, and procedures.
The report suggests neither SEAL had been trained appropriately in maximizing their chances of survival.
Other team members told investigators that few SEALs had practiced using the flotation systems in training. Though they understood its importance, there was little instruction on configuring the equipment.
Video footage showed Chambers “intermittently” at the surface for 26 seconds, and Ingram for 32 seconds, before both disappeared.
Chambers, a Chief Special Warfare Operator, and Gage, a Navy Special Warfare Operator 1st Class, were members of SEAL Team 3, which carried out the nighttime raid in the Arabian Sea.
They were stationed there after the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza intensified, which saw the Houthis escalate attacks against commercial and U.S. Navy ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. Retaliatory U.S. strikes have not deterred the assaults.
As Chambers climbed onto the ship’s deck, he slipped and fell nine feet into the water.
Ingram, seeing his teammate fall, jumped in after him.
Each supplied inflatable float could lift a minimum of 40 pounds in seawater, the report said.
“Encumbered by the weight of each individual’s gear, neither their physical capability nor emergency supplemental flotation devices, if activated, were sufficient to keep them at the surface,” Rear Admiral Michael DeVore wrote in the report.
It also cited “conflicting guidance” on using emergency flotation devices and extra buoyancy material.
At one point, Chambers, the team’s strongest swimmer, managed to grasp the lower rung of a ladder attached to the ship but was swept away by a wave.
Ingram, struggling in the water, appeared to try deploying his flotation device, but an unattached water wing floated nearby, suggesting a malfunction.
Both men were lost to the sea in less than a minute.
The report noted that in the turbulent six-to eight-foot waves, properly maintained and correctly used flotation devices could have kept them afloat long enough for rescue.
It advised that Chambers and Ingram’s flotation gear may not have been attached correctly, and a more thorough pre-mission “buddy check” might have identified the problem.
SEAL Team 3 initiated man-overboard procedures “within seconds.”
Two helicopters and drones provided surveillance and lighting for the search. Despite the rapid response, their bodies were not recovered after 10 days of searching.
Water depths of approximately 12,000 feet made retrieval unlikely.
“The Navy respects the sanctity of human remains and recognized the sea as a fit and final resting place,” the report said.
Chambers, aged 37, enlisted in 2012 and became a SEAL in 2014. Ingram, aged 27, joined the Navy in 2019 and completed SEAL training in 2021.
Their deaths have prompted changes in Naval Special Warfare Command’s training, including a review of flotation equipment policies and man-overboard procedures.
Rear Admiral Keith Davids, the command’s head at the time, vowed to implement the recommended changes.
Ingram has been nominated for a commendation for heroism for his efforts to save his colleague.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press