Questions Surround Drowning Of Decorated War Veteran At Long Beach
LONG BEACH (CBSLA.com) — Question surround the death of one of the nation's most decorated veterans in the global war on terror.
Sean Harvell drowned off the coast of Long Beach -- where he grew up -- early Tuesday morning.
KCAL9's Peter Daut reported from the scene.
Harvell was a legend -- especially in Long Beach where he grew up.
Many here want to know the circumstances surrounding his death.
He was the epitome of the U.S.Air Force.
Harvell was featured in several Air Force recruitment films.
"One day I find myself jumping out of the back of an airplane, the next day I'll find myself walking out of a submarine in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. There is no typical workday for us," he says in one film.
Daut said Harvell is also one of only three airmen to receive two Silver Stars for action in combat.
But Harvell was found floating in the in what authorities say appears to be an 'accidental drowning.'
"His feet were almost in the water. he was lying face up.," said witness Neil Gartner.
He said he heard a man screaming for help early Tuesday outside his home on Alamitos Beach.
Garvtner says the man was standing next to Harvell's body when police and firefighters arrived.
They tried to revive the 33-year-old but it was too late.
"It was tough, it was hard to sleep," Gartner said.
Harvell's loved ones were too overwhelmed to speak on camera.
They say the former combat controller had medically retired after almost a decade of service and planned to return to Iraq to do contract work for the Department of Defense.
Adding to his family's pain, Harvell's death follows that of his younger brother, also a combat controller, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2011.
And though investigators say there are no signs of foul play in Sean's death.. questions still surround the drowning of one of our nation's most respected war heroes.
"If it was calm water, why would a fit guy drown?," Gartner said.
An autopsy is pending.
Meanwhile, Air Force officials released a statement, saying his death is a terrible loss and that they'll never forget the service Harvell gave to our country.
