An Idaho man and retired army veteran has reportedly become the latest American casualty in Ukraine after joining the fight against Russia earlier this year.
The US State Department confirmed to The Independent on Thursday that an American man had died while fighting in the occuped Donbas region of Ukraine, in the country’s east.
While the State Department did not name the individual, family and friends of Dane Partridge took to Facebook to share their sadness at the news of his death on Wednesday, which is the latest US casualty in Russia’s war.
“We have just been informed that Dane aka Bird has passed away while still being on life support,” a post on a memorial Facebook page read on Wednesday. “I know his soul has found peace.”
“He was always good for a joke, witty banter and the occasional serious conversation,” the same post continued. “He stayed true to his faith and spiritual convictions till his dying days”.
While the circumstances around Partridge’s death remain unclear, his father Dennis Patridge said in a Facebook post on Tuesday that his son had been injured by a “Russian tank round” and that Dane was “in a coma with a significant brain injury.”
Patridge’s sister Jenny Partridge Corry said in a separate Facebook post that he was on life support at a military hospital in Kyiv, the Ukranian capital, where doctors said brain and neck injuries were “not conducive to life”.
“Dane is still on life support as there is a thorough medical/legal bureaucratic process to go through,” she explained on Tuesday. “We are all devastated by this news and trying to process this loss. We will be having a memorial and will keep you updated as we find out the details.”
Earlier this year, Partridge said he was travelling to the Ukraine border after travelling from Germany and Poland in April, in an apparent effort to join Ukraine’s fight against Russia. He said in a Facebook post that he “will not likely be giving locations or actions for opsec reasons. I will let you all know I’m alive.”
According to Matt Reeves, a friend of Partridge and fellow US Army veteran, said the pair had served together during the 2007-2009 phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq.
Mr Reeves added in a Facebook tribute that Partridge “left his wife, kids, and towing business to risk his life for the freedom of the Ukrainian people.”
His death comes after a 24-year-old US citizen from Tennessee died fighting in Ukraine in August, and a 52-year-old New Yorker in June. Several other Americans have been detained while fighting for Ukraine.
