Nathan Bruckenthal

Nathan B. "Nate" Bruckenthal (July 17, 1979 – April 24, 2004) was a Damage Controlman Third Class in the United States Coast Guard. He was the first Coast Guardsman to die in wartime action since the Vietnam War. Bruckenthal and two U.S. Navy sailors were killed while intercepting a waterborne suicide attack on an offshore oil terminal off the coast of Iraq in the northern Persian Gulf in 2004.

Bruckenthal was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with Valor and the Purple Heart for his actions.

Biography
Bruckenthal was born in Stony Brook, New York. He is the son of Ric Bruckenthal of Northport, New York, and Laurie Bullock of Ashburn, Virginia.

While growing up he had also lived in Hawaii, Virginia, and Connecticut. Bruckenthal and his family lived in Ridgefield, Connecticut from 1992 to 1995, where he was a volunteer firefighter from 1997 to 1998.

In 2001 he met his future wife, Pattie, while serving at Coast Guard Station Neah Bay. Pattie was a university student studying the Makah Indian tribe when Bruckenthal gave the students a tour of the station.

Bruckenthal intended to continue his public service by becoming a police officer or firefighter after completing his Coast Guard service and finishing college. He is survived by his wife, Pattie, and his daughter, Harper Natalie Bruckenthal, born after his death.

Petty Officer Bruckenthal is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Coast Guard service
Bruckenthal joined the Coast Guard on January 5, 1999. He served on USCGC Point Wells (WPB-82343), based out of Montauk, New York, prior to attending Damage Controlman "A" School. After school he was assigned to Station Neah Bay in the northwest corner of Washington on the Makah Indian Reservation.

His next assignment was to Tactical Law Enforcement (TACLET) Team South, at Coast Guard Air Station Miami. Bruckenthal's first tour to the Persian Gulf region was from April to June, 2003. He departed home for his second deployment in February 2004 and was due to return that June. During both tours his detachment, LEDET 403, was assigned to the USS Firebolt (PC-10).

Attack in the Persian Gulf
In 2004, Bruckenthal and two U.S. Navy sailors were killed while intercepting a waterborne suicide attack on the Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal off the coast of Iraq in the northern Persian Gulf. An account of the attack is included in an issue of the Coast Guard Reserve magazine.

In the early evening hours of April 24, a dhow (a lateen-rigged Arabian vessel) approached an oil terminal in the Persian Gulf. Bruckenthal, trained as both a boarding team member and boarding officer, was accompanied by one other Coast Guardsman and five sailors from the United States Navy. The group boarded a rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB), taking off in pursuit.

As the crew was poised to board the dhow, an explosion was detonated. Two Navy petty officers also died as a result of the waterborne attack: PO1 Michael J. Pernaselli, 27, of Monroe, N.Y., and PO2 Christopher E. Watts, 28, of Knoxville, Tenn. Injured were three Navy sailors and BM3 Joseph T. Ruggiero, USCG, 23, from Revere, Mass., who received the Purple Heart.

Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi of Al-Qaeda in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack.

Awards and decorations
Bruckenthal was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with Valor, the Purple Heart, and the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal. On his first Persian Gulf deployment he was awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal and the Combat Action Ribbon.

Petty Officer Bruckenthal is the first Coast Guardsman to be killed in action in military conflict since the Vietnam War. Bruckenthal's death is noted in an article listing Jewish U.S. service members killed in Iraq.

Namesake
The Unaccompanied Personnel Housing building at Coast Guard Station Montauk is named in honor of DC3 Nathan Bruckenthal. He served as a fireman on the USCGC Point Wells, which was homeported in Montauk, New York.