NewzA San Diego sailor who deployed on the USS Abraham Lincoln and has been in contact with people still serving on board says many of the problems being reported are common on almost every deployment he has experienced.Parker Moore, retired Chief Petty Officer, said water shortages, limited showers, and food rationing are issues sailors regularly face at sea."You have to make your own water - when those machines go down, there's nobody there to save you. When you're only making a certain amount of water... laundry [won't] be a thing," Moore said.
"You can only shower in cold water to limit the time."Texts Moore received from people currently on board described difficult conditions, including food and water rationing, six months without a port call, mail disruptions and suicidal ideation and attempts from sailors on board.While Moore has not been at sea for as long as the current deployment, he said he experienced similar conditions on most of his deployments."These conditions have been this way always," Moore said.Perhaps the most startling aspect of the reports involves attempted suicides on board. Moore said he has seen that on multiple deployments and believes morale could be especially low this time due to a lack of mail including packages and letters from families as well as the current political climate.The USS Abraham Lincoln is heading back to home port for replacement, but the Department of Defense did not confirm when or where the ship would be docking.The Navy provided these statements to ABC10's prior requests for comment:Statement on Mental Health:We have not observed an increase in suicidal ideations or attempts aboard the ship. We take every service members well-being seriously and have religious, medical and mental health professionals available to assess and address concerns as they arise.
USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) has five Navy Chaplains, one clinical psychologist, one clinical social worker, three behavioral health technicians and an embedded integrated prevention coordination (EIPC) counselor. The ship also has an expeditionary facility dog, CAPT Fathom, to support crew morale and emotional welfare. These resources are available to Sailors and Marines throughout the Strike Group 24 hours a day, 7 days a weekSailors go through normal transitions throughout a deployment cycle.
Adapting to life at sea can be difficult, so we've learned how … SAN DIEGO (KGTV) The USS Abraham Lincoln has been at sea for more than 250 days, and one San Diego sailor's father says his son is doing fine despite growing reports of substandard conditions and mental health struggles on board.Todd Sickenger said he recently reached out to his son, Devynn, after news about the ship's conditions kept escalating."The story kept coming out and getting bigger, so I did reach out to him yesterday afternoon, and he told me he's fine and things are OK there," Sickenger said.The Lincoln has been at sea for more than 250 days while supporting the U.S. The ship deployed last November and was originally set to return in May.
It has not made a port call in more than 200 days, setting a record for consecutive days at sea.Over the last week, the Lincoln has come under scrutiny over mental health and supply issues on board. Democratic lawmakers are demanding answers, while the Department of Defense says conditions have been "completely misrepresented."Sickenger said his son did not bring up any of those concerns."He didn't mention any of that. He just said everything is fine, as, you know, with him and with the ship," Sickenger said.Sickenger acknowledged that his son's experience may not reflect what every sailor on board is going through."I understand that just because he says he's OK, not everybody might be OK, and I understand that, but I don't feel like it's the time or the place to make a big deal out of this," Sickenger said.The USS George Washington is now heading to the Middle East and is expected to relieve the Lincoln.Sickenger said he hopes Devynn and the roughly 5,000 sailors on board get to come home soon to rest after a longer-than-expected deployment."I have no concerns about him whatsoever.
A good sailor; it's been a good situation for him," Sickenger said.This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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