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‘Selfless’ U.S. Navy sailor from South Florida dies while serving in Red Sea

Aviation Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class Oriola Michael Aregbesola was from Miramar

FILE US NAVY PHOTO (2016) – A U.S. Navy Sailor from Miramar died while serving on The Arleigh Burke Class guided-missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG 87). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class J. Alexander Delgado/Released) (Mass Communicatin Specialist 3rd Class J. Alexander Delgado, US Navy)

MIRAMAR, Fla. – The Pentagon announced on Saturday that Michael Aregbesola, who was from South Florida, died on Wednesday while serving as a U.S. Navy sailor in the Red Sea.

The U.S. Department of Defense described Aregbesola’s death as “a non-combat related incident” that was under investigation, and the U.S. Navy described it as a “sailor lost overboard.”

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“Aregbesola fully embodied the selfless character and thoughtful warrior spirit of the United States Navy Sailor,” Cmdr. Eric Kohut said in a statement about the petty officer.

Aregbesola, 34, of Broward County, died while serving as an aviation machinist with Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 74 aboard the USS Mason, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG-87) sails in the Gulf of Aden on Nov. 25, 2023. US Navy Photo (US NAVY)

“His outstanding performance prior to and during deployment went well beyond aircraft maintenance,” said Kohut, the HSM-74 commanding officer. “He truly saw and valued every member of the ship/air team.”

Aregbesola, of Miramar, had joined the U.S. Navy in July 2020. He was assigned with the “Swamp Foxes” in December 2020 and deployed on the USS Mason, part of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, to the waters off Yemen

“He will continue on in the heart of every Swamp Fox and our brothers and sisters in the IKE Carrier Strike Group,” Kohut said. “Our deepest thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

The USS Mason has been part of the U.S. 5th Fleet operations since November.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG 87), sails in the Red Sea in support of Operation Prosperity Guardian (OPG) Jan. 31. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Chris Krucke) (US NAVY)

In January, the U.S. Navy reported the USS Mason was supporting “Operation Prosperity Guardian,” which the U.S. Naval Institute reported the Pentagon described as “an initiative to protect commercial traffic in the region after almost two months of attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea by forces in Yemen.”

The U.S. Central Command reported in February that the USS Mason had shot down a missile in the Gulf of Aden that had been launched from an Iranian-backed Houthi-controlled area of Yemen.

“The missile was likely targeting MV Torm Thor, a U.S.-flagged, owned, and operated chemical/oil tanker,” according to the USCC statement.

The “multi-national push” to protect freedom of navigation continued in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden on Sunday.

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