Rhode Island State Police, Rhode Island
End of Watch Tuesday, August 31, 1954
Add to My HeroesDaniel L. O'Brien
Trooper Daniel O'Brien drowned while performing rescue operations in East Matunuck during Hurricane Carol.
Trooper O'Brien was near Succotash Road, informing residents of the oceanfront homes to evacuate when rapidly rising water crippled his patrol car. While helping a citizen, a large wave separated the two and washed Trooper O'Brien away.
His abandoned patrol car was found with just the siren sticking out of the water and his body was found lying face down in debris near Post Road in the marsh in East Matunuck.
Trooper O'Brien was a U.S. Army veteran of the Korean War and had served with the Rhode Island State Police for three years. He was survived by his parents, three brothers, one sister, and a fiancee.
He was posthumously awarded the agency's State Police Service Ribbon.
Bio
- Age 25
- Tour 3 years
- Badge 40
- Military Veteran
Incident Details
- Cause Weather/Natural disaster
Most Recent Reflection
View all 30 ReflectionsAugust 31, 2024 will be the 70th anniversary of your death by drowning in Hurricane Carol. I think of you every day and miss you terribly! I will be 89 in August of this year and look forward to seeing you in the afterlife when that day comes. You were 42 weeks short of becoming 26 years old and I had just turned 18.
as my mom said at the time, "You have just experienced the greatest heartbreak of your life."
Meredith Holt Cassick
Fiancée
June 1, 2024
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