Navy honor guardsman faints in 94F heat while waiting to carry John Lewis’ casket
A NAVY honor guardsman fainted in 94 degree weather while waiting to carry John Lewis’ casket.
The honor guard member – fully clothed with a face-mask, hat, and gloves – appeared to have fainted outside the United States Capitol Rotunda on Monday afternoon.
High temperatures in Washington, DC – which possibly reached up to 96 degrees midday – appeared to cause a member of the military honor guard to faint during the procession[/caption]
He fell to the ground during John Lewis’ arrival ceremony at the US Capital Building – prompting a slight delay in the transporting of the late congressman’s casket.
The honor guards had been waiting to bring Lewis to the Capitol Rotunda.
High temperatures in Washington, DC – which possibly reached up to 94 degrees midday – seems to have caused the man to faint.
Moments after falling to the ground, the man – dressed in a white formal service inform – was helped up by others and walked into the Capitol.
Lewis, the first black lawmaker to lie in state in the Rotunda, passed away on Friday in Atlanta after receiving hospice care to treat pancreatic cancer.
His coffin was first placed under the Capitol Dome in Washington, DC for a fews hours and will be moved to the Capitol steps this evening.
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Lewis was the senior member of the Congressional Black Caucus and a man known as the “conscience of the Congress.”
While attending segregated schools in Alabama, Lewis was inspired by the peaceful protests of rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr.
He eventually rose to join their ranks and since 1987 he had represented a Georgia district in Congress.