Ft. Story GI Dies After Physical Training

VIRGINIA BEACH -- A Soldier collapsed and died Monday after finishing a workout at Joint Expeditionary Base Fort Story in Virginia Beach.

Staff Sgt. Donahue B. Harris, a section chief with the 241st Seaport Operations Company, was finishing physical training with other Soldiers around 7:30 a.m. when he collapsed in front of the company area, said Sgt. 1st Class Kelly Jo Bridgwater, a spokeswoman for the Army's 7th Sustainment Brigade.

Fellow Soldiers performed CPR on Harris until an ambulance arrived. He was taken to Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 8:11 a.m.

Harris, 44, joined the Army in 1995. He'd had multiple overseas deployments, most recently to Haiti after it was devastated by an earthquake.

"Our hearts and sympathy go out to his family during their time of loss," Lt. Col. John Broomhead, commander, 11th Transportation Battalion, 7th Sustainment Brigade, said in a statement. He called Harris "one of our finest Soldiers."

Harris' death is being investigated. Bridgwater said she did not know what type of physical training the Soldiers had done before Harris collapsed.

Local bases curtail or suspend outdoor physical training when temperatures reach certain thresholds, but conditions Monday did not warrant restrictions. According to the National Weather Service, it was about 77 degrees at nearby Oceana Naval Air Station on Monday morning.