BOSTON (AP) — The governor of Massachusetts described a Navy SEAL lost in the Arabian Sea during a mission to confiscate Iranian-made weapons from an unflagged ship as a Westfield, Massachusetts native who heroically died trying to rescue a teammate.
During the Jan. 11 raid, Navy Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Christopher J. Chambers jumped into the sea to save a second SEAL who had slipped and fallen under the waves as he tried to climb aboard the unflagged ship. The vessel was carrying illicit Iranian-made weapons to Yemen, according to U.S. officials familiar with the incident. Both of the SEALs involved in the mission went missing.
The 11-day search and rescue mission to locate the two SEALs was called off on Sunday and became a recovery effort. On Monday, the Navy released their names, after their families were notified. The second SEAL was identified as Navy Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class Nathan Gage Ingram.
Chambers, 37, enlisted in the Navy in 2012, and graduated from SEAL training in 2014.