A 20-year-old Marine was killed April 20 during pre-deployment training at Twentynine Palms, California, media reports.
Military spokesperson Lt. Olivia Giarrizzo told Fox News Digital, Cpl. Jackson Forringer died when a gun discharged in the back of a truck carrying military personnel.
No other injuries were reported and an investigation into the incident is underway, according to the news outlet.
Forringer, from Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, enlisted in the Marines in July 2021. He arrived for training at Twentynine Palms in late March.
A former marine who knew Forringer, Trey Smith-Tatham told the Marine Corps Times Forringer’s platoon had been ordered to get in the truck with their rifles loaded.
Smith-Tatham described Forringer as a “really good dude,” according to the Marine Corps Times.
The fatal incident occurred just weeks after three service members were injured in an on-duty vehicle rollover crash also at Twentynine Palms.
Forringer “never met a stranger and was one of the humblest, kind-spirited individuals you could meet,” a family member wrote in the short obituary posted online. “He loved to give back and help others.”
Forringer had recently been adopted after being in foster care since 2019.
His family is holding a graveside service and memorial May 6 in their hometown of Chesnee, South Carolina.
