Several US Navy sailors have reportedly attempted to go overboard from the USS Abraham Lincoln after the aircraft carrier’s Middle East deployment was extended with no clear end date.
About 5,000 sailors and Marines are still aboard the carrier, more than eight months after the deployment began on November 21.
The crew had expected to come home in May, but officials pushed the mission out indefinitely amid the war with Iran.
Families say the prolonged time at sea has taken a serious toll, leaving some sailors exhausted and desperate enough to try to leave the ship by jumping overboard.
One of those sailors was the husband of Annabelle Loma, who said he had been repeatedly stretched beyond his limits before the incident.
He is now on medical hold, Loma said, adding that she has gone weeks without hearing from anyone in the Navy about his condition.
‘He’s scared,’ Loma told the Military Times. ‘He thinks he’ll get a dishonorable discharge and just because he was burnt out, his 13-year career is ruined, just like that.’
‘That’s not fair,’ she said. ‘That’s not what he should be worried about.’
The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier is pictured in April carrying out blockade operations in the Arabian Sea
Sailors onboard the aircraft carrier have been deployed for more than eight months
In a separate incident, a sailor on watch saw a shipmate preparing to go overboard and intervened, Maria Rodriguez, the sailor’s wife, told the outlet.
She described how her husband called out to the sailor before reaching down and grabbing the sailor’s arms, pulling him back onto deck.
The sailor had not yet gone overboard when her husband rushed to his aid, Rodriguez said, noting that three other sailors heard the commotion and came running to help.
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‘He said he hadn’t felt adrenaline like that in his life and he was just so thankful he was able to get to [the sailor] in time, to stop them from going overboard,’ she noted.
Rodriguez said she does not know what happened to the sailor in the aftermath.
Sailors have also described an incident in which watchstanders stopped a crew member from going overboard as sailors continue to struggle with exhaustion and declining morale, according to Stars and Stripes.
As family members now grow more concerned about their loved ones onboard the aircraft carrier, more than 200 met with acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao in an emotional town hall last Thursday.
At one point during the meeting, a spouse tearfully told officials she received a message that same day from her husband saying ‘he hopes he doesn’t wake up tomorrow,’ Stars and Stripes reports.
More than 200 family members met with acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao (left) last Thursday to discuss their concerns about their loved ones’ mental health
A mother also described how her daughter feels like she is never going to be able to come home and believes she is going to die on the ship, according to MS Now.
Officials did not respond directly to that claim or similar statements family members made. Instead, Vice Admiral Joseph Cahill, commander of the Naval Surfaces Forces, simply acknowledged the strain on sailors and their families the extended deployment causes.
‘We hear you loud and clear -regarding] the impact this has on families, on service members and the long-term ability of us to stand, sustain our force’s health.’
He then stressed that sailors had access to mental health professionals, chaplains and doctors, and noted they were also sending more mental health professionals to the ship.
Navy officials also added that the USS Lincoln’s leadership is continuously assessing sailor’s psychological readiness.
Cao told family members at the meeting that the Navy is preparing another carrier strike group – the USS Theodore Roosevelt – to deploy to the Middle East to relieve the sailors onboard the Lincoln, two people who attended the meeting told MS Now.
But he would not specify when the relief would come, citing operational security.
The Daily Mail has reached out to the US Navy for comment.
This story will be updated.
