A sailor died May 18 after succumbing to injuries he sustained in a Washington state scooter accident, officials said.
Around 7 p.m. on April 30, Missile Technician 3rd Class Nathan A. Castor, 21, crashed his 2006 Yamaha Chappy into a guardrail on a two-lane road south of Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, according to Castor’s family and the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office.
A member of the ballistic missile submarine Alabama’s Blue Crew, Castor sustained injuries to his lungs, heart and brain and was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle after the accident, according to his father, Robert Castor.
Castor had been wearing a helmet, but it was found “badly damaged” and appeared to have come off during the collision, according to officials at the sheriff’s office.
While his son had good and bad days in the hospital “there was no coming back” from his injuries, Robert Castor said.
The Florida native had completed the base’s motorcycle safety course, his father added.
“He bought it on a Saturday and wrecked it on a Tuesday," said the elder Castor.
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Robert Castor, who lives in Milton, Florida, said his son loved to kayak and paddleboard and had taken up snowboarding after he reported to the Alabama in September 2017.
Although his son had served less than three years in the Navy, Robert Castor said he took to submarine life and had been initiated into the Royal Order of the Shellbacks when his boat crossed the equator.
“He loved it,” Castor said. “He was one of the few selected to come up and go swimming in the middle of nowhere. It sounded fun and scary at the same time.”
The father said he takes a small comfort in the fact that his son’s kidneys and liver were immediately donated to three patients in need.
“We feel great about it,” he said. “Just to know he helped somebody else one last time.”
Funeral arrangements are pending, and the family plans to bury the sailor next to his grandfather, “a lifer in the Navy” who did 30 years and inspired Castor to enlist, Robert Castor said.
Castor is at least the 13th sailor to die in a motorcycle, moped or scooter accident since the federal fiscal year began on Oct. 1.
Geoff is the managing editor of Military Times, but he still loves writing stories. He covered Iraq and Afghanistan extensively and was a reporter at the Chicago Tribune. He welcomes any and all kinds of tips at geoffz@militarytimes.com.
