Soldier kept on life support

Sgt. Frank Sandoval was declared brain dead early Monday morning and is expected to be removed from life support within days, according to his wife.

Michelle Sandoval said her husband is being kept alive for organ donations, but that he will be removed from ventilators later this week.

The Sun was not told of the plans to keep Frank Sandoval alive on ventilators when it spoke Monday with a distraught immediate family member hours after physicians alerted the family of Frank Sandoval's medical situation.

The Yuma soldier underwent surgery on June 13 to implant a prosthetic mold, which would replace a portion of his skull that was removed due to an injury that occurred during his second tour of duty in Iraq two years ago.

Michelle Sandoval said her husband was in surgery for about four hours at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif. After surgery, doctors told her "everything was fine."

However, hours later, Frank Sandoval was rushed back into surgery due to his brain swelling, according to Michelle Sandoval.

At the family's request, the hospital's acting public affairs officer, Bill Ball, did not release any details Monday.

The Sun was told Monday by a member of the immediate family that Frank Sandoval had "passed away a couple of hours ago."

Michelle Sandoval said that she was very "proud" of her husband.

"I don't know how I'm doing it," she said. "I just know I have to get through this."

Frank Sandoval is the son of Yuma residents Rick and Beatrice Sandoval, and the father of 5-year-old daughter Joelena.

Frank Sandoval had volunteered to be in the lead vehicle on the patrol in which he was injured in November 2005 in Baghdad. He had been manning a .50-caliber machine gun mounted on a Humvee when an explosion from a roadside bomb caused a projectile to become lodged in his right temple. Doctors were forced to remove a piece of his skull due to the wound.

Frank Sandoval was released from the hospital in September 2006 and returned to Yuma and had continued to make progress on his recovery.

Frank Sandoval received a Purple Heart for his injury and a Combat Action Badge Cap Award. He was also awarded a Bronze Star, which is the fourth-highest combat award for bravery in the U.S. Armed Forces.

Frank Sandoval is a 1999 graduate of Kofa High School, where he was a member of both the football and wrestling teams, and later became a boxer in the Army. He enlisted in the Army after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

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Jackie Leatherman can be reached at jleatherman@yumasun.com or 539-6849. James Gilbert can be reached at jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854.

For more on Sgt. Sandoval's story, see the links below: