Published: Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Fallen Marine had Whidbey ties
She is the first female Marine officer to die in Iraq
COUPEVILLE - The first woman Marine officer to be killed in Iraq since the war started has ties to Whidbey Island, military officials announced Monday.
Maj. Megan M. McClung, 34, died Dec. 6 in the Anbar province of Iraq.
She was a public affairs officer assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters in Camp Pendleton, Calif.
McClung has family in the Coupeville area.
A man who answered the phone at the family's home Monday told a reporter that McClung's family requested all media inquires be directed to officials at Camp Pendleton.
The exact circumstances surrounding McClung's death were not immediately released, but Camp Pendleton spokesman Navy Lt. Cmdr. Cliff Carnes said she was escorting media when she was killed. The journalists she was with were not seriously injured, he said.
"She was a Marine's Marine," Carnes said. "She exemplified everything that it was to be a warrior. She was a great personality and a great friend."
Her boss in Iraq, Lt. Col. Bryan Salas, said McClung was an advocate of media coverage of military operations, and while in Iraq she managed the Marine media embedding program.
Carnes said McClung, who was unmarried, was in the final month of a yearlong deployment to Iraq.
Officials said McClung joined the Marine Corps in 1995 after graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy.
She was nominated to the academy in 1989 while attending Mission Viejo High School in California.
McClung was deployed to Iraq in January.
She received commendation medals from the Navy and Marine Corps and also was given the National Defense Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
McClung's death happened just a day after a Marysville soldier died from injuries he suffered last month while on duty in Iraq.
Spc. Jordan W. Hess, 26, was injured Nov. 11 in Ta'Meem, Iraq, when an improvised bomb exploded near the man's patrol. He died Dec. 5 while being treated for his injuries at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.
McClung was a triathlete and an avid runner. In October, she helped organize a marathon for Marines in Iraq to coincide with the Marine Corps Marathon in the U.S.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
Maj. Megan M. McClung, 34, died Dec. 6 in the Anbar province of Iraq.
She was a public affairs officer assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters in Camp Pendleton, Calif.
McClung has family in the Coupeville area.
A man who answered the phone at the family's home Monday told a reporter that McClung's family requested all media inquires be directed to officials at Camp Pendleton.
The exact circumstances surrounding McClung's death were not immediately released, but Camp Pendleton spokesman Navy Lt. Cmdr. Cliff Carnes said she was escorting media when she was killed. The journalists she was with were not seriously injured, he said.
"She was a Marine's Marine," Carnes said. "She exemplified everything that it was to be a warrior. She was a great personality and a great friend."
Her boss in Iraq, Lt. Col. Bryan Salas, said McClung was an advocate of media coverage of military operations, and while in Iraq she managed the Marine media embedding program.
Carnes said McClung, who was unmarried, was in the final month of a yearlong deployment to Iraq.
Officials said McClung joined the Marine Corps in 1995 after graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy.
She was nominated to the academy in 1989 while attending Mission Viejo High School in California.
McClung was deployed to Iraq in January.
She received commendation medals from the Navy and Marine Corps and also was given the National Defense Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
McClung's death happened just a day after a Marysville soldier died from injuries he suffered last month while on duty in Iraq.
Spc. Jordan W. Hess, 26, was injured Nov. 11 in Ta'Meem, Iraq, when an improvised bomb exploded near the man's patrol. He died Dec. 5 while being treated for his injuries at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.
McClung was a triathlete and an avid runner. In October, she helped organize a marathon for Marines in Iraq to coincide with the Marine Corps Marathon in the U.S.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
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