TIFTON, Ga. – A Florida resident who sought refuge in Tifton, Georgia, after fleeing Hurricane Matthew died Thursday.

William Meech, 45, collapsed at Wal-Mart while there with his family. He was taken to Tift Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead after a brain aneurism he had ruptured, according to his wife, Kara.

Meech and his wife, along with their three daughters, had been forced to evacuate from their home in Yulee, Florida, north of Jacksonville, due to Hurricane Matthew. The family has been staying with friends.

Meech was a veteran, and had served in the Navy on board the USS Missouri as a gunner’s mate. He was one of the last to serve on the Missouri before it was decommissioned, something he was very proud of, according to Kara Meech.

Guevara writes for the Tifton, Georgia Gazette.