Evan Huettl takes the oath to join the Army at the Anchorage Military Entrance Processing Station in Alaska on Oct. 14, 2021. (U.S. Army)
A soldier with the 11th Airborne Division at Fort Wainwright was found dead Sunday in a hotel room in Palmer, Alaska, according to Army officials.
Spc. Evan Stuart Huettl, 28, of Anchorage was an infantryman with the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, according to John Pennell, spokesman for the U.S. Army in Alaska at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson near Anchorage.
Pennell said the cause of death is under investigation. No information on funeral or memorial services was available Tuesday.
Spc. Evan Stuart Huettl, 28, was found dead in a hotel room in Palmer, Alaska, on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2024. (U.S. Army)
Palmer Police Chief Dwayne Shelton said officers responded to a call Sunday of a man “unresponsive and likely deceased.” He said there were no apparent signs of foul play or suicide. Medical examiners are conducting further tests on Huettl’s body. Results will not be known for up to several weeks.
Palmer is 43 miles northeast of Anchorage, and 359 miles south of Fort Wainwright, which is near Fairbanks.
After joining the Army, Huettl trained at Fort Moore, Ga. He reported to Fort Wainwright, the northernmost base in the Army, in June 2022. The 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team is a swift response unit that depends on mobility to get to areas of conflict. The unit specializes in cold weather combat. It utilizes CH-47 Chinook and UH-1 Huey helicopters for air mobility and travels in medium and light tactical vehicles on the ground.
