PALMYRA, Va. (AP) - A 19-year-old Virginia sailor who died after the U.S. Naval destroyer he was aboard collided with a container ship is being remembered as a “good kid,” a loyal friend and a dependable volunteer firefighter.
The Navy identified Gunner’s Mate Seaman Dakota Kyle Rigsby of Palmyra as one of the sailors killed in the collision off the Japanese coast Saturday. The sailors’ bodies were found inside the wreckage.
The Lake Monticello Volunteer Fire Department said Rigsby, a graduate of Fluvanna County High School, joined the department in 2014, following in the footsteps of his mother.
Assistant Fire Chief Jean Campbell described Rigsby as a dependable firefighter, calling his death “a tragic loss.”
“He was a good kid; he’d give his shirt off of his back for you,” said volunteer firefighter Farrah Brody.
Chase Karaca, 20, said he met Rigsby in fourth grade and they bonded over playing Pokemon.
The game sparked an interest for Rigsby in Japanese culture, so “it was a dream come true for him” to get to visit and “to be doing something for his country,” Karaca said.
Rigsby, who played football in high school, had “an incredibly big heart,” his friend said.
Karaca, who is biracial with black and Turkish heritage, said he was bullied after 9/11 because of his appearance and his last name, but Rigsby was a loyal friend.
“No matter who you were, where you were from, he’d treat you like he’d known you all his life,” Karaca said.
Rigsby enlisted in February 2016, according to service records provided by the Navy. He reported to duty aboard the Fitzgerald in November, the records show.
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