Ft. Jackson Basic Trainees Dying
Posted on | October 28, 2008
The third soldier in weeks? Jesus. In my day at Ft. Jackson, we never took it seriously when a drill sergeant threatened to PT us to death. That was the peacetime Army.
FORT JACKSON, S.C. — Officials at Fort Jackson say a 21-year-old soldier has died after she collapsed while running during the Army’s physical fitness test.
Authorities said Monday that Pvt. Andrea D. Rosser of Raleigh, N.C., was pronounced dead at a Richland County hospital Saturday, the same day she collapsed after running for about 20 minutes during the 2-mile portion of the test.
Rosser was scheduled to graduate Friday. The Army is investigating her death.
Rosser was the third soldier to die at the base within the last few weeks.
Pvt. Dominique Gibson-Brooks of Durham, N.C., died Sept. 25 after having a seizure. Pvt. Derryl Britt of Houston was taken off life support the same week after surgery to repair a brain hemorrhage.
I believe that it’s still true that Ft. Jackson trains mainly non-combat types, while prospective infantry tend to go to Ft. Benning and other posts. When I went through Basic Combat Training, the fitness test was given five times over the eight weeks, two weeks apart. Many trainees don’t pass it the first time (I didn’t), even at the reduced standards for Basic. In my day, though, I never heard of the test killing anyone.
The two-mile run was the only event I enjoyed, coming as it does at the end of the test after two minutes each of push-ups and sit-ups. It was also the only event I never failed, so it was always gravy for me–easy, motivating points after the toughest part (for me) was already over.
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