"Sailor, a Port Orchard resident, found dead"

"At first it seemed to his fellow shipmates that Machinist's Mate Fireman Apprentice William Parkhill had missed ship's movement as the Bremerton-based USS Camden prepared to depart Singapore.During morning muster Sept. 16, Parkhill, 19, was absent and unaccounted for. But tragically, two days later at sea, Parkhill's body was found at the bottom of one of the ship's six-story elevator shafts used to move weapons ammunition and cargo. Pacific Fleet PAO spokesman John Yoshishige said Wednesday that just exactly how far Parkhill fell is still unknown.At this point it's hard to tell. The investigation is still ongoing although signs point to an accident. He died of a massive head trauma which was consistent with a fall, Yoshishige said. Parkhill had been stationed on board Camden for a little more than a year. He was married with his wife residing in Port Orchard and his parents living in his native Texas. Camden departed Puget Sound in mid-August for a deployment to the Persian Gulf and is assigned to the USS Lincoln Battle Group that is comprised of seven Pacific Fleet ships. Camden and the Lincoln Battle Group proceeded towards the Persian Gulf, arriving Sept. 24.The Everett-based carrier Abraham Lincoln is also dealing with the loss of one of its own, as an F/A-18 Hornet aircraft and its pilot crashed in the northeast Persian Gulf shortly after launching off the deck of the carrier Sept. 29. The pilot has not been found.The Camden and the Abraham Lincoln are due to return to their respective ports of Naval Station Bremerton and Naval Station Everett in early February. "

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