Army Nurse in Afghanistan Dies While Skyping With Wife

Army Nurse Capt. Bruce Kevin Clark, 43, of Spencerport, N.Y., who was based in Afghanistan was skyping with his wife on Monday when he suddenly passed away. His cause of death has not been released, pending a military investigation into the matter.

Clark’s family released a statement about his passing, which stated that:

“Bruce’s wife tragically witnessed her husband’s death during one of their regular Skype video chats.”

Clark was assigned to A Company, Troop Command at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso, and was deployed to Afghanistan in March. Clark’s brother-in-law, Bradley Taber-Thomas, told the AP that:

“We are entrusting the military with investigating and with finding out what happened to Capt. Clark.”

The family’s statement went on to say that:

“At the time of the incident, the family was hoping for a rescue and miracle, but later learned that it was not to be…While we understand the interest our family’s tragedy will attract given the unique circumstances, we ask that our privacy be respected during our time of grief.”

On Thursday, Capt. Clark’s body was returned to Dover Air Force Base, and a funeral is planned in Spencerport, N.Y., a suburb of Rochester. Details about the funeral were not immediately available. Clark and his family moved to Spencerport, his wife’s hometoen, in 2000, and Clark joined the army in 2006.

The statement by his family went on to read:

“Although the circumstances were unimaginable, Bruce’s wife and extended family will be forever thankful that he and his wife were together in his last moments.”