Corporal Bell was a member of Company C, 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was seriously injured by the enemy in South Korea on 14 August 1950 and returned to duty 11 October 1950. He was listed as Missing in Action while fighting the enemy in North Korea on 26 November 1950. He was presumed dead on 31 December 1953. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Bell was awarded the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.