Navy Seal Dies In Skydiving Exercise In Deland

By  //  January 12, 2015

'He will be missed by all who knew him'

Untitled-7
Petty Officer First Class William “Blake” Marston was found unconscious near 2000 Brunswick Lane, which is on airport property, police said. ( Image for SpaceCoastDaily.com )

DELAND, FLORIDA – A 31-year-old Navy SEAL was killed in a skydiving accident while training in DeLand early Saturday morning.

DeLand police said they were called to Skydive DeLand just before 8:30 a.m. for a report of a hard landing.

Petty Officer First Class William “Blake” Marston was found unconscious near 2000 Brunswick Lane, which is on airport property, police said.

According to the police incident report, Marston appeared to have a broken leg when he was found. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

“The entire Naval Special Warfare community extends our sincerest condolences to the family and friends of our teammate, Blake. He will be missed by all who knew him,” a statement from the Navy said.

“An investigation into this incident is underway.” 

A witness told investigators he saw something fly off the Marston’s parachute as he was between 40 and 60 feet in the air, police said.

The investigation into the accident has been turned over to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Marston, of Concord, N.H., was a SEAL assigned to an East-coast based SEAL Team and had served in the Navy for six years, officials said.

WESH TV