Odessa veteran killed in crash

ODESSA — A local man was killed Wednesday, July 31, in a motorcycle crash near downtown.

John Hardt, 78, of Odessa was northbound on state Highway 21 when he lost control of his 2006 Harley-Davidson XL 883 motorcycle and careened into a ditch near May Avenue about 4:55 p.m., the Washington State Patrol reported.

Despite wearing a helmet, Hardt was pronounced dead at the scene, the patrol reported. Neither drugs nor alcohol was a factor.

A 1964 Wilson Creek High School graduate, Hardt was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he served as a military police officer with the 127th MP Company for two years.

From 1967 to 1968, he was stationed in Vietnam, where he guarded prisoners of war, provided security at docks, and supervised Vietnamese citizens unloading American military ships.

After his discharge, he returned home, where he became active in the American Legion and later the Veterans of Foreign Wars.