Marine may not walk after bus wreck
Accident killed one, injured 18 Marines
Thursday, March 20, 2008
TOM GORDON
News staff writer

A Marine Reservist injured in a March 9 bus wreck that took the life of one of his fellow Marines may never walk again.

Lance Cpl. William J. Lafitte, 24, of Laurel, Miss., suffered fractured vertebrae in the wreck at Fort Rucker that fatally injured Lance Cpl. David Miles, 19, of Madison. Both are members of the Bessemer-headquartered Anti-Terrorism Battalion, 4th Marine Division.

Master Gunnery Sgt. David Holladay, a spokesman for the reserve unit, said Lafitte had spinal fusion surgery Tuesday at a Dothan hospital, and doctors are telling his family "it's not promising that he'll ever walk again."

"But he is having sensations," Holladay said. "He's able to differentiate hot and cold in his extremities. He's able to detect pressure. So there are all kinds of reasons for the family to be looking for a miracle."

Another Marine injured in the wreck, Lance Cpl. William C. Kuehner, 21, of Helena, suffered a fractured pelvis and was in UAB Hospital on Wednesday. Kuehner is slated to start "intensive rehab later this week," Holladay said.

"They got him out of the bed for the first time yesterday on like a rolling walker where he didn't have to put much of his weight on it," Holladay said.

Eighteen Anti-Terrorism Battalion members suffered non-fatal injuries in the wreck, and Lafitte and Kuehner were the only two still hospitalized Wednesday. Another unit member, Staff Sgt. Arthur M. Sparks, 41, of Locust Fork, Ga., was released from a hospital late last week.

The bus wreck happened about 9:30 a.m. on March 9. Twenty-three Anti-Terrorism Battalion Marines were aboard, returning from weekend training. A number of them attended Miles' funeral on Friday in Madison.

The bus is owned by Adventure Bus Charter & Tours Inc. in Sumiton, and the driver has been charged with reckless driving. In a recent interview, Larry Cummings, vice president of the bus company, said he could not comment on the wreck because it is under investigation but expressed sympathy for Miles and his family.

"I have mourned for that young man," Cummings said. "I have hurt for (his) family."


E-mail: tgordon@bhamnews.com

Ellie