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New York Times
23-05-2025
- New York Times
18 Soldiers Are Suspended After Blanks Were Fired at a Crowded Florida Beach
Eighteen Rangers have been suspended after one or more of them fired blanks into the air at a crowded beach and boating area along Florida's Emerald Coast, the authorities said this week. The Rangers were in the area of Fort Walton Beach for the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival, an annual pirate-themed festival that draws residents and tourists to the region. They participated in a mock sea battle, firing blanks as a pirate boat approached the city landing, on the evening of May 16. But that event was the only festival activity in which the Rangers were approved to fire their weapons, the City of Fort Walton Beach said in a statement. Earlier that day, the Rangers had gone to a popular boating area several miles away, Crab Island, which is in Choctawhatchee Bay, and some fired blanks there, too, according to city officials. Video posted on social media showed two small boats with uniformed military personnel in a crowded area near other vessels carrying passengers as well as bathers in the water. In the video, at least one of the personnel fires into the air. At least five calls reporting the gunfire came in to the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office just before 3:30 p.m. on May 16, a spokeswoman said. Michael Ingram, a charter boat captain, told Task & Purpose, a news outlet that covers the military, that when the firing began, he heard screaming, and his clients and many other boaters took cover. 'What happened at Crab Island was not part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival, nor was it approved by either the City of Fort Walton Beach or the Billy Bowlegs organization,' the city said in a statement. The incident on May 16 was reported by Task & Purpose earlier this week. The 18 soldiers involved were suspended from their duties as instructors while the Army investigates, according to Jennifer K. Dolsen, a spokeswoman for the Army Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning in Georgia. The soldiers were with the 6th Ranger Training Battalion assigned as instructors in the swamp phase of the Rangers course at Camp Rudder in Florida. 'We take this situation seriously and are investigating,' Ms. Dolsen said in a statement. 'The Army will ensure accountability based on the outcome of the investigation.' There were no reports of injuries. The pirate festival, which the city has celebrated for 69 years, ran from May 15 through May 19 this year, with mock battles, skirmishes, fireworks and entertainment.
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Wild moment Army Rangers go rogue and open fire at crowded Florida beach in mock sea battle gone wrong
A group of at least 18 Army Rangers apparently went rogue when they opened fire at a crowded Florida beach last Friday and sent boaters and sunbathers ducking for cover. The soldiers were caught on video wearing their military fatigues and Army Ranger t-shirts in two row boats off of Crab Island when they fired blanks into the air next to people wading through the shallow water and enjoying the warm weather. In one video shared to social media, a woman could be heard off camera shouting 'Is that real?' as the shots went off. The sound of guns discharging prompted clients on Michael Ingram's charter boat to try to take cover, he told Task & Purpose. After the second burst, Ingram said he heard people screaming in the distance - and his heart sank as he thought somebody had been shot. 'This is unacceptable because there are so many real mass shootings going on in America each year,' the boat captain argued. 'You can't be joking about it.' Meanwhile, the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office reported it received at least two 911 calls about the shots fired. The shocking incident apparently came after the Army Rangers with the 6th Ranger Training Battalion participated in a pirate festival just five miles away - but city officials and festival organizers have denied the wild scene was part of the festivities. Army Rangers take part in the annual Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival at the nearby Fort Walton Beach each year. As part of the festivities, the soldiers engage in a mock battle in which they fire blanks while riding in small boats to capture the legendary pirate. Festival officials, though, note that the Army Rangers in the videos were not participating in a sanctioned event at the time - and were located outside of the festival's perimeter. City of Fort Walton Beach officials also noted that it had sent out noise alerts earlier in the day detailing the exact time frame and location of the battle, as well as the noises that could be expected. The shots heard Friday afternoon were not on the schedule, city officials said on social media. They explained that the mock sea battle 'was the ONLY approved festival activity that involved the Army Rangers firing their weapons.' 'What happened at Crab Island was NOT part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival, NOR was it approved by either the City of Fort Walton Beach or the Billy Bowlegs organization.' 'We do not know what occurred at Crab Island on Friday... except to say that it was not in any way part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival,' city spokesman Devon Ravine added, noting that the Fort Walton Beach Landing is five miles from Crab Island. A soldier who spoke on the condition of anonymity to Task & Purpose also seemed surprised by his colleagues' actions. He said that if the Rangers were testing their weapons prior to the Pirate Festival, they showed poor judgment by doing it so close to civilians. The soldier also expressed his doubt that a senior leader would have given permission to fire weapons in public outside of the designated festival area. Jennifer S. Gunn, a spokeswoman for the Army Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, Georgia, has since confirmed the US Army is investigating the incident. 'We take this situation seriously and are investigating,' she said, adding that the Army 'will ensure accountability based on the outcome of the investigation.' She has since announced that the 18 soldiers involved in the fake shooting have been temporarily suspended as instructors, pending the outcome of the investigation. As part of the suspension, Gunn said, the soldiers cannot train students going through the final stage of the US Army Ranger Course at Camp Rudder, which is located on Elgin Air Force Base in Florida.
New York Post
23-05-2025
- New York Post
18 Army Rangers suspended for allegedly firing blanks at crowded Florida beach after mock ‘sea battle' during pirate festival
Shiver me timbers! Nearly two dozen Army Rangers were reportedly suspended after wild videos surfaced online allegedly showing the soldiers firing several blank rounds at a crowded Florida beach during a local pirate festival. The 18 soldiers from the 6th Ranger Training Battalion at Camp Rudder are under investigation for using their automatic weapons without permission after participating in a mock 'sea battle' at the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival on Crab Island in Destin Friday, according to Task & Purpose. Advertisement 4 The US Army suspended 18 Rangers after soldiers were captured on video allegedly firing blank rounds at a crowded Florida beach. Wam Water Adventures/Facebook Shocking videos shared on social media captured at least two groups of uniformed soldiers in small boats — surrounded by swimmers and boaters — firing bursts of shots into the air along Fort Walton Beach and terrifying beachgoers. Advertisement 'Is that real?' one woman could be heard shouting in one of the clips. A festivalgoer told the outlet that the unexpected gunfire forced several boaters to take cover. 4 Videos showed the soldiers firing bursts of shots into the air. Wam Water Adventures/Facebook 'This is unacceptable because there are so many real mass shootings going on in America each year,' Michael Ingram, a local charter boat captain, said. Advertisement 'You can't be joking about it.' The alarming incident occurred after the Rangers took part in the faux maritime skirmish, during which the servicemen fired blanks from their boats at a pirate ship to 'capture' Billy Bowlegs — a legendary figure in the Sunshine State. While the dummy rounds were approved for the floating firefight, city officials said the soldiers did not have permission to rattle off additional shots afterward. Advertisement 4 The alarming incident happened during a pirate festival on Crab Island. Wam Water Adventures/Facebook 'What happened at Crab Island was NOT part of the Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival, NOR was it approved by either the City of Fort Walton Beach or the Billy Bowlegs organization,' the city wrote in a Facebook post Saturday. 'A noise alert was sent out early Friday detailing the exact time frame and location of this 'battle,' as well as the noises that could be expected. This was the ONLY approved festival activity that involved the Army Rangers firing their weapons.' The sudden pop of shots also reportedly resulted in local police receiving a flurry of concerned calls. 4 Festival organizers said the Rangers did not have permission to rattle off shots. Gil Osterloh/Facebook The soldiers, who are stationed at Eglin Air Force Base, are now barred from training recruits in the final phase of the Army's Ranger course — dubbed the swamp phase — pending the outcome of the probe, the outlet reported. 'The Army is aware of the incident that occurred at Crab Island,' a spokesperson for the Army Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning told the publication. Advertisement 'We take this situation seriously and are investigating. The Army will ensure accountability based on the outcome.' The US Army did not immediately respond to The Post's request for comment.
