WASHINGTON – The final picture taken by a U.S. Army photographer captured the explosion that killed her.
Spec. Hilda Clayton was killed in Afghanistan in 2013 when a mortar tube accidentally exploded during a live-fire exercise.
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Time reports Clayton, 22, took the final photo the instant before the detonation.
With approval from Clayton's family, the military released the photos in the current issue of Military Review to pay homage to her commitment and to raise awareness of the Army's gender problems.
In the article accompanying the photo, the magazine says, “This edition of the Military Review is focused on promoting the concepts of gender equality and these photographs illustrate the dangers our military men and women face both in training and in combat.”
The Washington Post says Clayton was the "first combat documentation and production specialist to be killed in Afghanistan."
An Afghan military photographer and three Afghan soldiers were also killed in the blast.