By Cpl. John Simpson, 3d Marine Division

A routine day off in Henoko, Okinawa, Japan, turned into a life-saving mission for two Marines on April 6, 2026. Lance Cpl. Karson King and Lance Cpl. Damien Bluntson, both stationed on Camp Schwab, utilized their training to stabilize an injured Okinawan resident.

Rain fell across the Henoko district as two Marines waited for their food on a Monday night. The evening’s routine shifted when they spotted a figure on the ground in the distance.

King and Bluntson discovered an unconscious local Japanese man lying in the street.

“There was a puddle of blood on the ground by his head,” Bluntson said.

King noted the severity of the scene as the rain continued to fall. “When we got there, there was already a puddle of blood pooling up downstream in the rain so we could only imagine how much blood he had already lost,” King said.

The two Marines immediately transitioned to a life-saving mindset. King attributed their reaction to plain instinct as well as the constant tactical combat casualty care training they had received during their time serving in an infantry battalion.

“There was definitely a switch that flipped in our heads when we saw him,” King said. “We got to get this guy help.”

King moved to the man to begin providing aid while Bluntson set out on foot to find assistance.

“The communication between us was instant,” said King. “I grabbed the man while he took off to find help.”

Bluntson ran approximately half a mile in total, checking a police station and multiple restaurants to find someone who could help bridge the language gap. He eventually located a tattoo artist who spoke English and helped translate between them and the gathering local citizens.

While Bluntson sought professional medical help, King moved the man.

“I carried him underneath the awning to get him out of the rain,” King said.

Attempting to use his sweater to wrap the man’s head wounds, King recognized that the man was struggling with the makeshift bandage. He shifted his approach and set the sweater aside, continuing to apply the direct pressure needed to slow the blood flow.

“I heard him softly say ‘Thank you,’” King said.

The surrounding community joined the effort as the situation unfolded. One woman drove to her home and returned with napkins to help clean off the excess blood from the injured man. A local citizen called emergency services while the tattoo artist verified the details for them.

“The locals started gathering around us and one even bowed to us,” said King.

Emergency services and police arrived after approximately 20 minutes from when they first saw the man. The Marines remained on the scene until the man was stabilized and loaded into the ambulance.

Both Marines emphasized that their actions were rooted in a basic sense of human responsibility and enhanced by their Marine Corps TCCC training.

“I believe if you’re combat ready, you are able to handle almost any situation, even if it’s just a humanitarian act,” Bluntson said.

On April 15, the Henoko Business Administration presented King and Bluntson with certificates of appreciation for their actions in an official ceremony held at Camp Schwab. Despite the recognition, the Marines maintained that their focus remained on the well-being of the local resident and that their response was a practical application of their tactical training and an inherent sense of duty to those around them.

“We were just doing the right thing to do, not even as a Marine, but as a human,” King said. “We’re trained to fight, but we’re always ready to protect those around us.”

King and Bluntson are assigned to 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, currently forward deployed under 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division as part of the unit deployment program.

King is a native of Illinois and Bluntson is a native of Florida.