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WTU soldier found dead at Stewart ID’d

The 3rd Infantry Division has identified a soldier who was found dead in his barracks at Fort Stewart, Ga., on Friday.

Spc. William M. Smith, 27, of Statenville, Ga., was assigned to the Warrior Transition Unit on July 28, 2008. He had been in the Army two years.

He was an ammunition handler with the Georgia National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 214th Field Artillery.

A cause of death was not reported, nor was the nature of his ailment.

“From his records it looks like he wasn’t deployed, so it’s not a combat injury,” Fort Stewart spokesman Kevin Larson said.

The Fort Stewart WTU has more than 400 soldiers assigned to it, about 50 of those from the National Guard, according to December statistics.

The Army has stood up 36 WTUs since spring 2006 in an effort to provide focused rehabilitation and care for soldiers wounded in battle as well as any soldiers requiring care for other injuries.

Establishment of the units arose a few months after revelations that wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center were languishing in sub-standard housing while they waited for medical and disability evaluations.

The Fort Stewart transition unit was created in June 2007. Two other soldiers assigned to the unit have died while convalescing.

An investigation continues into the death of Smith.