Bennie Adkins, who earned the Medal of Honor in 2014 for his service in Vietnam, has COVID-19 and is currently hospitalized, according to a post on The Bennie Adkins Foundation Facebook page.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has hit home," the post states. "Bennie has been hospitalized and is critically ill with COVID-19 respiratory failure. We ask for your thoughts and prayers."
Adkins, 86, also earned the Alabama Medal of Honor and currently lives in Opelika.
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Lee County reached 47 as of Thursday evening, and the number for the entire state is at 531, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health.
During the Vietnam War, Adkins ran through enemy fire as he rescued injured comrades in 1966.
After the Battle of Camp A Shau, Adkins and fellow troops fled into the jungle to evacuate but were pursued by North Vietnamese soldiers, according to a previous article from The Plainsman. Then, a tiger came to their rescue.
“We were in the jungle, and the North Vietnamese soldiers that had us surrounded were more afraid of the tiger than us, so they backed off and gave us room to get away,” Adkins told The Plainsman in April 2019.
The Bennie Adkins Foundation raises money to support special forces units as they reenter civilian life. Adkins raises money for the Foundation by traveling around the country giving lectures about his career. He also donates his share of profits from his book sales.
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Eduardo Medina, senior in journalism, is the editor-in-chief of The Auburn Plainsman.
