“HONOR THE DEAD BY HELPING THE LIVING”
Today, the DPAA is focused on the research, investigation,
recovery, and identification
of the approximately 34,000 (out of approximately 83,000 missing DoD personnel)
believed to be recoverable, who were lost in conflicts
from World War II to Operation Iraqi Freedom.
March 03, 2017
KHAMMOUANE, Laos --
With
1,614 service members missing in action from the Vietnam War, the Defense
POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) deploys hundreds of service members,
DoD civilians, and contractors all over the world in hopes of returning our
nation’s fallen heroes.
Recently a team of 59 personnel completed DPAA’s second Laos mission of fiscal
year 2017, covering the Central East region of Laos. From rice patties to
mountainsides,
the teams excavated thousands of square meters of land recovering important
evidence relating to missing servicemen lost during the war.
“I’m
very honored to have been part of this initiative to bring our missing home,”
said U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chris Walgenbach,
recovery non-commissioned officer. “This mission has been the most unique part
of my 13 year career in the military and I know others feel the same way.”
Every
team member plays an important role in mission success. Whether that is the
recovery non-commissioned officer setting up the sites,
or the recovery leader collecting scientific data, working together ensures
nothing is overlooked and the safety of the team remains number one priority.
Due
to the efforts of the teams, Laos representatives handed over possible remains
to the U.S. to be repatriated and welcomed back on American soil after 48 years.
Upon arrival the possible remains will be transported to DPAA’s laboratory for
examination and possible identification.
“During this mission I have worked along side some of the greatest men and women
I’ve had the pleasure of meeting,
and being chosen for the repatriation ceremony was a perfect way to end such a
great mission,” said U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Andrew Brod,
recovery non-commissioned officer. “It is truly an honor to be bringing closure
to the families of our fallen service members.”
The
hard work and continued dedication of these teams makes it possible for DPAA to
fulfill our nations promise and
provide fullest possible accounting for our missing service members to their
families and the nation.
U.S. Navy
Petty Officer 1st Class Ameil Fredeluces, edic, and U.S. Marine Corps. Staff
Sgt. Eddie Ludwig, explosive ordinance disposal technician,
remove dirt from units during excavation operations as part of the Defense
POW/MIA Accounting Agency’s mission in the Khammouane Province, Laos,
January 29, 2017. Recovery Team Three executed excavation operations in
search of two missing U.S. Air Force pilots who crashed while on a visual
reconnaissance mission during the Vietnam War over 48 years ago. DPAA’s mission
is to provide the fullest possible accounting
for our missing personnel to their families and the nation.
Members of
the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency dig units during excavation operations as
part of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency’s
mission in the Khammouane Province, Laos, January 26, 2017. Recovery Team Three
executed excavation operations in search of two missing
U.S. Air Force pilots who crashed while on a visual reconnaissance mission
during the Vietnam War over 48 years ago. DPAA’s mission is to provide the
fullest possible accounting for our missing personnel to their families and the
nation.
Jack Kenkeo,
life support investigator, shovels dirt from the screening stations during
excavation operations as part of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency’s
mission in the Khammouane Province, Laos, January 23, 2017. Recovery Team Three
executed excavation operations in search of two missing U.S. Air Force pilots
who crashed while on a visual reconnaissance mission during the Vietnam War over
48 years ago.
DPAA’s mission is to provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing
personnel to their families and the nation.
U.S. Army
Staff Sgt. Francis Sangiamvongse, linguist, screens soil with local villagers
during excavation operations as part of the Defense POW/MIA
Accounting Agency’s mission in the Khammouane Province, Laos, January 29, 2017.
Recovery Team Three executed excavation operations in search
of two missing U.S. Air Force pilots who crashed while on a visual
reconnaissance mission during the Vietnam War over 48 years ago.
DPAA’s mission is to provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing
personnel to their families and the nation.
Lynn Rakos,
scientific recovery expert, waters hard soil to help with excavation operations
as part of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency’s mission
in the Khammovan Province, Laos, January 23, 2017. Recovery Team three executed
excavation operations in search of two missing U.S. Air Force pilots
who crashed while on a visual reconnaissance mission during the Vietnam War over
48 years ago.
DPAA’s mission is to provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing
personnel to their families and the nation.
In March of
2017, Making the effort to thank the troops for what they do out in the field
means everything.
With a DPAA recovery team in Quang Nam Province, two hours west of Da Nang,
Vietnam.
The UW-Madison
story involved
a group of six students and staff members who were part of a team that unearthed
a World War II U.S. fighter aircraft—
and possibly remains of its pilot—in the ground under a farm field in France
this summer.
The team used ground-penetrating radar and a photo taken by a
British reconnaissance plane two days after the May, 1944
crash of the P-47 Thunderbolt flown by 1st Lt. Frank Fazekas.
Search underway for Lakewood, Ohio airman of World War II
Search underway for Lakewood, Ohio airman of World War II.
Divers of the U.S. Defense
POW/MIA
Accounting Agency and Civil Defense of Grado, Italy,
prepare for an exploratory dive on the sunken B-24 bomber.
This B-24 Liberator is the same type of airplane that
Lakewood, Ohio airman Thomas McGraw was flying in when it was shot down and
crashed off the coast of Italy during World War II.
A Missing Air Crew Report details the last flight of the B-24 and nose gunner
Thomas McGraw of Lakewood, Ohio.
B-24 located in Adriatic; Crewmanis bones sought Ught Lakewood Manis remains
crewman Omber crew,am2-2k-28 bold Header from A1.
A skull fragment was recovered at the site of a wrecked B-24 bomber
off the coast of Italy that may contain the remains of
Thomas McGraw,
of Lakewood, Ohio.
An underwater view of the crash site of a B-24 off Grado, Italy.
FINDING ENSIGN HAROLD P. DeMOSS IN THE MUCK AND MIRE
“Seeing
those photos was so overwhelming that I cried like a baby”
said DeMoss’ niece, Judy Ivey. “To see this actually taking place
is not anything I ever really expected.”
Anine-person military team
has been digging up mud four days a week
in the Koolau range in search of a missing World War II pilot whose
fighter crashed in cloud cover during a night training flight.
A bucket-and-pulley system
was set up to move excavated
material to a spot where it can be bundled in tarps for
helicopter transport to Wheeler Army Airfield.
NOTE: The Navy’s Bureau of Medicine and Surgery said in a 1948 letter
to the family that “an attempt to recover the remains was
considered impracticable” because the site was 7 miles
from a traveled highway in the mountains.
On Feb. 25, 1944, Duran wasn’t supposed to be on the doomed B-24H
Liberator, nicknamed “Knock it Off.”
Normally a nose turret gunner, Duran was the substitute tail turret gunner on
the flight, replacing the usual tail gunner who had frostbite.
The earth by the headstone next to the church in this tiny mountain village was full of rocks.
Two days of digging under a hot sun had yielded buckets of
gravel, stones the size of men’s fists and many piles of dirt – but no bones.
After 73 years, Sgt. Alfonso O. Duran was still missing.
The family feels a sense of closure regardless of the outcome,
Duran said.
“What a difference it would have made to my father and to my aunt,”
she said, “to know he had died and somebody had buried him and tended the
grave.”
Members of
the recovery team attach a POW flag to the wreckage of the
Tulsamerican, a B-24 Liberator piloted by, Lt. Eugene P. Ford, a Derry Township,
Pa. native,
when it crashed into the Adriatic Sea in 1944.
USS Arizona was
a Pennsylvania-class battleship built
for and by the United
States Navy in
the mid-1910s. Named in honor of the 48th
state's
recent admission into the union, the ship was the second and last of the Pennsylvania class
of "super-dreadnought"
battleships. Although commissioned in
1916, the ship remained stateside during World
War I.
Shortly after the end of the war, Arizona was
one of a number of American ships that briefly escorted President Woodrow
Wilson to
the Paris
Peace Conference.
The ship was sent to Turkey in 1919 at the beginning of the Greco-Turkish
War to
represent American interests for several months. Several years later, she was
transferred to the Pacific
Fleet and
remained there for the rest of her career.
Aside from a comprehensive modernization in 1929–31, Arizona was
regularly used for training exercises between the wars, including the annual Fleet
Problems
(training exercises). When an earthquake struck
Long Beach, California,
in 1933, Arizona's
crew provided aid to the survivors. Two years later, the ship was featured in a Jimmy
Cagney film, Here
Comes the Navy,
about the romantic troubles of a sailor. In April 1940, she and the rest of the
Pacific Fleet were transferred from California to Pearl
Harbor,
Hawaii, as a deterrent to Japanese
imperialism.
During the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor on
7 December 1941, Arizona was
bombed. After a bomb detonated in a powder magazine, the battleship exploded
violently and sank, killing 1,177 officers and crewmen. Unlike many of the other
ships sunk or damaged that day, Arizona was
irreparably damaged by the force of the magazine explosion, though the Navy
removed parts of the ship for reuse. The wreck still
lies at the bottom of Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial,
dedicated on 30 May 1962 to all those who died during the attack, straddles the
ship's hull.
A number of other boats were sunk in the attack, but later
recovered and repaired.
The USS California (BB-44)
lost 100 crew members that morning, after the ship suffered extensive flooding
damage when hit by two torpedoes on the port side.
Both torpedoes detonated below the armor belt causing virtually identical damage
each time.
A 250 kg bomb also entered the starboard upper deck level, which passed through
the main deck and exploded on the armored second deck,
setting off an anti-aircraft ammunition magazine and killing about 50 men.
After three days of flooding, the California settled
into the mud with only her superstructure remaining above the surface.
She was later re-floated and dry-docked at Pearl Harbor for repairs. USS California served
many missions throughout the war,
and was eventually decommissioned in February, 1947.
On the morning of December 7, 1941, Japanese bombs fell and
torpedoes slashed through the waters of Pearl Harbor,
causing a devastating amount of damage to the vessels lined up in Battleship Row
in in the dry docks nearby.
Each of the seven battleships moored there suffered some degree of damage, some
far worse than others.
The USS Arizona (BB-39)
and the USS Oklahoma (BB-37)
were completely destroyed. Though the Maryland (BB-46)
was believed by Japan to also have been sunk, she ultimately survived and became
one of the first ships to return to the war.
During the attack on Pearl Harbor, ships like the USS Cassin (DD-372),
a Mahan-class
destroyer, suffered what was originally thought to be fatal damage.
While she was extensively damaged during the attack, she was resurrected and
went on to return to service during the remainder of World War II.
The sunken battleship USS West Virginia (BB-48) at Pearl Harbor after her fires
were out, possibly on 8 December 1941.
USS Tennessee (BB-43) is inboard. A Vought OS2U Kingfisher floatplane (marked
“4-O-3”) is upside down on West Virginia’s main deck.
A second OS2U is partially burned out atop the Turret No. 3 catapult.
In the aftermath of the attacks on Pearl Harbor during World War Two stories emerged of sailors who were trapped in the sunken battleships, some even survived for weeks.
Those who were trapped underwater banged continuously on the side of the ship so
that anyone would hear them and come to their rescue.
When the noises were first heard many thought it was just loose wreckage or part
of the clean-up operation for the destroyed harbor.
However the day after the attack, crewmen realized that there was an eerie banging noise coming from the forward hull of the USS West Virginia, which had sunk in the harbor.
t didn’t take long for the crew and Marines based at the harbor to realize that
there was nothing they could do. They could not get to these trapped sailors in
time.
Months later rescue and salvage men who raised the USS West Virginia found the
bodies of three men who had found an airlock in a storeroom but had eventually
run out of air.
Survivors say that no one wanted to go on guard duty anywhere near the USS West
Virginia since they would hear the banging of trapped survivors all night long,
but with nothing that could be done.
When salvage crews raised the battleship West Virginia six months after the
Pearl Harbor attacks,
they found the bodies of three sailors huddled in an airtight storeroom —
and a calendar on which 16 days had been crossed off in
red pencil.
The USS Oklahoma was on Battleship Row in Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. That was the morning that the Japanese Empire attacked the United States by surprise.
The Japanese
used dive–bombers, fighter–bombers, and torpedo planes to sink nine ships,
including five battleships, and severely damage 21 ships.
There were 2,402 US deaths from the attack. 1,177 of
those deaths were from the USS Arizona,
while 429 of the deaths were from the USS Oklahoma.
The crew of the USS Oklahoma did everything they could to fight back. In the first ten minutes of the battle, though, eight torpedoes hit the Oklahoma, and she began to capsize. A ninth torpedo would hit her as she sunk in the mud. 14 Marines, and 415 sailors would give their lives. 32 men were cut out through the hull while the others were beneath the waterline. Banging could be heard for over 3 days and then there was silence.
After the battle, the Navy decided that they could not salvage the Oklahoma due to how much damage she had received. The difficult savage job began in March 1943, and Oklahoma entered dry dock 28 December. Decommissioning September 1, 1944, Oklahoma was stripped of guns and superstructure, and sold December 5, 1946 to Moore Drydock Co., Oakland, Calif. Oklahoma parted her tow line and sank May 17, 1947. 540 miles out, bound from Pearl Harbor to San Francisco. Today, there is a memorial to the USS Oklahoma and the 429 sailors and marines lost on December 7, 1941, located on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
The minelayer Oglala technically
didn't suffer a hit on December 7, but a torpedo passed under it and hit the USS
Helena.
The blast from that crippled the old Oglala which
had been built as a civilian vessel in 1906.
The crewmembers took their guns to the Navy Yard Dock and set them up to provide
more defenses.
They also set up a first aid station that saved the lives of West Virginia
crewmembers.
The ship suffered horribly, eventually capsizing and sinking
until just a few feet of the ship's starboard side remained above water.
It was declared lost, and the Navy even considered blowing it up with dynamite
to clear the dock it had sunk next to.
But the decision was made that it could destroy the dock, so the Navy had to
refloat it. At that point, it made sense to dry dock and repair it.
None of the crew of Oglala were killed in the attack, although three received injuries.
Sean Patterson, Armed Forces Medical Examiner System Department
of Defense DNA Quality Management Section DNA Analyst,
replaces U. S. Navy Fireman 1st Class Billy James Johnson's picture background,
signifying him as an identified service member who was previously missing in
action.
Johnson marks the 200th service member to be identified following the December
7, 1941 Pearl Harbor
attack where 429 U.S. Sailors and Marines were killed on the USS Oklahoma
(BB-37).
A
series of large posters hang in the conference room of the Defense POW/MIA
Accounting Agency laboratory located at Offutt Air Base, Nebraska.
The heading on each of the posters states “USS OKLAHOMA.” Underneath the
headings are neat rows of printed rectangular frames.
Each one represents a person who was unaccounted for when the USS Oklahoma was
sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.
Thanks
to the work of Dr. Brown’s team, the remains of 200 previously unknown crewmen
from the USS Oklahoma
have now been returned to their families for proper burial and their families
have those long-awaited answers.
The story of the USS Oklahoma’s lost crewmen is
an evolving history lesson that began on what
President Franklin D. Roosevelt called
“a date that will live in infamy.”
LIST OF USS OKLAHOMA IDENTIFICATIONS FROM MICHIGAN:
(Please note that in some USS Oklahoma identifications,
the primary next of kin has yet to be notified,
and therefore the names will not be released at this time.)
*Ensign William M. Finnegan, 44, of Bessmer, Mich.
*Seaman 1st Class Robert W. Headington, 19, of Bay City, Michigan
*Machinist's Mate 1st Class Fred M. Jones, 31, of North Lake, Michigan
*Fireman 3rd Class Gerald G. Lehman, 18, of Hancock, Michigan
*Fireman 2nd Class Lowell E. Valley, 19, of Ontonagon, Michigan
It is through this effort that the accounting community
has been able to honor the sacrifices of the USS Oklahoma Sailors and Marines
and their families who pushed for the fullest possible accounting of their loved
ones.
Ford Island
is seen in this aerial view during the Japanese attack on Pearl harbor December
7, 1941 in Hawaii.
(The photo was taken from a Japanese plane.)
Remember
the fallen: In all, 429 people on board the
battleship were killed in the attack.
Only 35 were identified in the years immediately after.
Battleship
USS Oklahoma unturned hull at the bottom of Pearl Harbor
after the devastating Japanese bombing attack on Dec. 7, 1941.
Service Personnel Not Recovered Following
WWII
from MICHIGAN - 2460
Service Personnel Not Recovered Following
Korea
from MICHIGAN - 336
Service Personnel Not Recovered Following
Cold War
from MICHIGAN - 4
Service Personnel Not Recovered Following
Viet Nam
from MICHIGAN - 48
RECENTLY
FOUND
HEROES in 2020
U.S. Navy Fireman 1st Class Leo T.
Keninger, 20, of Ackley, Iowa, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Keninger was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Keninger.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Keninger.
To identify Keninger’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces
Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
analysis.
Keninger’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from WWII. A rosette will
be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
The date and location of Keninger’s funeral has
yet to be determined.
Navy Fireman 1st Class Andrew J.
Schmitz, 26, of Richmond, Virginia, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Schmitz was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Schmitz.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Schmitz.
To identify Schmitz’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces
Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
analysis.
Schmitz’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from WWII. A rosette will
be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Schmitz will be buried March 6, 2020 in Amelia
Court House, Virginia.
U.S. Naval Reserve Machinist’s Mate 1st
Class Paul H. Gebser, 39, of San Diego, killed during World War II,
was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Gebser was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Gebser.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Gebser.
To identify Gebser’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces
Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
analysis.
Gebser’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are missing from WWII. A rosette will be
placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
The date and location of Gebser’s funeral have
yet to be determined.
Army Sgt. David C. Sewell, 30, of
Walker, Minnesota, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Sewell was a member of Company M, 3rd Battalion,
31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action
on Nov. 28, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea,
when his unit was attacked by enemy forces. Following the battle, his remains
could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam,
Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA
laboratory for identification.
To identify Sewell’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed
Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA
(auSTR) analysis.
Sewell’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who
are still missing from the Korean War.
A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been
accounted for.
Sewell will be buried in Anoka, Minnesota. The
date has yet to be determined.
U.S. Navy Seaman 2nd Class Everett G.
Windle, 20, of Kansas City, Missouri, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Windle was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Windle.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Windle.
Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS
Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.
To identify Windle’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces
Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
analysis.
Windle’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from WWII. A rosette will
be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Windle will be buried at the Punchbowl. The date
has yet to be determined.
Navy Fireman 1st Class James C. Webb,
23, of Hobart, Arkansas, killed during World War II, was accounted
for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Webb was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Webb.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Webb.
To identify Webb’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical
Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
analysis.
Webb’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from WWII. A rosette will
be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
The date and location for Webb’s funeral have yet
to be determined.
Navy Steward’s Mate 2nd Class Jesus F. Garcia, 21, from Guam killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Garcia was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize.
The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Garcia.
Pilot
U.S. Army Air Forces 1st Lt. Ernest L. Roth, 20, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In May 1944, Roth was assigned as a pilot with the 359th
Bombardment Squadron, 303rd Bombardment Group, 8th Air Force in Europe.
On May 19, he was piloting a B-17G bomber while on a bombing run over Berlin when the plane was hit by flak and crashed. Six of the 10 crewmembers, including Roth, were killed in the crash.
They were recovered by German forces and reportedly buried in the Döberitz cemetery.
Navy Seaman 1st Class Lyal J. Savage,
19, of Dexter, New York, killed during World War II, was accounted
for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Savage was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Savage.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks.
The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the identifications
of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS subsequently buried the
unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the
Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In October 1949, a military
board classified those who could not be identified as non-recoverable, including
Savage.
To identify Savage’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces
Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA,) Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.
Savage’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from WWII. A rosette will
be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Savage will be buried June 27, 2020, in his
hometown.
Navy Seaman 1st Class Edward
Wasielewski, 21, of Detroit, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Wasielewski was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly
capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including
Wasielewski.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks.
The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the identifications
of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS subsequently buried the
unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the
Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In October 1949, a military board
classified those who could not be identified as non-recoverable, including
Wasielewski.
To identify Wasielewski’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used Y-chromosome STR DNA (Y-STR) analysis.
Wasielewski name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl along with the others who are missing from WWII. A rosette will be
placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
DPAA is grateful to the Department of Veterans Affairs and the
Department of the Navy for their partnership in this mission.
Wasielewski will be buried Feb. 21, 2020, in San
Diego.
Navy Fire Controlman 1st Class Robert L.
Corn, 24, of Baker City, Oregon, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Corn was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Corn.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks.
The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the identifications
of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS subsequently buried the
unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the
Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In October 1949, a military board
classified those who could not be identified as non-recoverable, including Corn.
In April 2015, the Deputy Secretary of Defense issued a policy
memorandum directing the disinterment of unknowns associated with the USS
Oklahoma. On June 15, 2015, DPAA personnel began exhuming the remains from the
Punchbowl for analysis.
To identify Corn’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological and dental analysis, as well as circumstantial and material
evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used
Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.
Corn’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are missing from WWII. A rosette will be
placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Corn will be buried May 1, 2020, at the
Punchbowl.
U.S. Army Pvt. James J. Cansler, 21, Polk County, Mo. killed during World War II, was accounted for.
His unit was engaged in battle with German forces near Vossenack, Germany, in the Hürtgen Forest, when he was reported as missing in action.
A year later, Army officials had received no evidence he had been captured or otherwise survived combat, and so released a presumptive finding of death.
James J Cansler is buried or memorialized at Tablets of the Missing at Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands.
Army Pfc. James W. White, 21, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In the spring and summer of 1944, White, an infantryman, was a
member of Company F, 2nd Battalion, 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), also
known as Merrill’s Marauders.
After taking the airfield in Myitkyina, Burma, from the Japanese on May 17, White’s battalion was tasked with holding the airfield and taking part in the siege of Myitkyina.
White was reported to have been killed during fighting on July 2.
Navy Chief Fire Controlman Daniel F. Harris, 40, from South Carolina was killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Harris was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Harris.
His remains have been buried in mass graves at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Marine
Marine Corps Reserve Pfc. Raymond
Warren, 21, of Silverdale, Kansas, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In November 1943, Warren was a member of Company K, 3rd
Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which
landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the
Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands, in an attempt to secure the island. Over
several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and
Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were
virtually annihilated.
Warren died between the first and second
day of battle, Nov. 20-21, 1943. He was reported to have been buried in
the Division Cemetery, which was eventually renamed to Cemetery #27.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa at Lone Palm Cemetery
for later repatriation. However, almost half of the known casualties were never
found. No recovered remains could be associated with Warren, and, in October
1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In 2015, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization, notified
DPAA that they discovered a burial site on Betio Island and recovered the
remains of what they believed to be missing American service members who had
been buried in Cemetery #27. The remains were accessioned into the DPAA
laboratory.
To identify Warren’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.
Warren’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific along with the others killed or lost
in WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been
accounted for.
Warren will be buried at Arlington National
Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. The date has yet to be determined.
Army Master Sgt. Harold F. Drews, 21, of
Elgin, Illinois, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In December 1950, Drews was assigned to King Company, 3rd
Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. For several days, his
unit was engaged in intense fighting with the Chinese People’s Volunteer
Forces near the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea. Drews went missing in action on
Dec. 12, 1950. His remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were
subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Drews’ remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA
(mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.
Drews’ name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who
are missing from the Korean War.
A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been
accounted for.
Drews will be buried Feb. 19, 2020, in St.
Charles, Illinois.
Navy Fireman 1st Class Hadley I. Heavin,
23, of Baxter Springs, Kansas, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Heavin was assigned to the battleship USS West
Virginia, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS West Virginia sustained multiple torpedo
hits, but timely counter-flooding measures taken by the crew prevented it from
capsizing, and it came to rest on the shallow harbor floor. The attack on the
ship resulted in the deaths of 106 crewmen, including Heavin.
During efforts to salvage the USS West Virginia, Navy personnel
recovered the remains of the deceased crewmen, representing at least 66
individuals. Those who could not be identified, including Heavin, were interred
as unknowns at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the
Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
From June through October 2017, DPAA, in cooperation with
cemetery officials, disinterred 35 caskets, reported to be associated with the
USS West Virginia from the Punchbowl and transferred the remains to the DPAA
laboratory.
To identify Heavin’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Heavin’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are missing from WWII. A rosette will be
placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Heavin will be buried May 23, 2020, in his
hometown.
Navy Fireman 1st Class Rex E. Wise, 21,
of South Haven, Kansas, killed during World War II, was accounted
for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Wise was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Wise.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks.
The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the identifications of 35 men from
the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS subsequently buried the unidentified
remains in 46 plots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as
the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In October 1949, a military board classified those
who could not be identified as non-recoverable, including Wise.
To identify Wise’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical
Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Wise’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from WWII. A rosette will
be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Wise will be buried April 22, 2020, in Braman,
Oklahoma.
February 4
Marine Corps Pfc. Royal L. Waltz, 20, from California killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In November 1943, Waltz was a member of Company A, 1st Battalion,
18th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, which landed against stiff Japanese
resistance on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert
Islands,
in an attempt to secure the island.
Over several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were virtually annihilated.
Waltz died between the first and second day of the battle, Nov. 20-21, 1943.
Private First Class Waltz is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Marine
February 4
Marine Corps Reserve Cpl. Oscar E. Koskela, 22,
from Detroit Michigan,
killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In June 1944, Koskela was a member of Headquarters Company, 29th
Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, when American forces participated in the
battle for Saipan, part of a larger operation to secure the Mariana Islands.
Koskela reportedly sustained wounds in combat and was taken onboard the USS Solace for treatment. He died onboard the ship June 18, 1944.
Following his death, his body was delivered onshore for burial. However, no further details were provided concerning the location.
February 4
Navy Chief Machinist’s Mate Lada
Smisek, 42, from the Philippines, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In 1942, Smisek served at the Naval Ammunition Depot and
Submarine Base in Cavite, Philippine Islands, when Japanese forces invaded.
Intense fighting continued until the surrender of the Bataan peninsula on April
9, 1942,
and of Corregidor Island on May 6, 1942.
He was captured on Corregidor Island following the American
surrender on May 6, 1942, and was interned at the Cabanatuan Prisoner of War
Camp on Luzon in Nueva Ecija Province.
More than 2,500 POWs perished in this camp during the war.
He died there of dysentery on September 28, 1942. He was buried
in a communal grave in the camp cemetery along with other deceased American
POWs. In 1946, Common Grave 437 was disinterred,
and five sets of remains were recovered from it.
Two sets of remains were identified, while the other three sets were determined
unidentifiable and reburied as "unknowns" in the Manila American Cemetery and
Memorial.
Due to the known commingling of remains between common graves on
Cabanatuan, in 2016, the ‘unknowns’ associated with Common Grave 437 were
disinterred and accessioned into a DPAA laboratory for reexaminations.
One set of remains was identified as those of CMMP Smisek.
Chief Machinist's Mate Smisek is memorialized on
the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Army Cpl. Arthur C. Ramirez, 19, of
Pima, Arizona, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Ramirez was a member of Battery B, 57th Field
Artillery Battalion, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on
Dec. 6, 1950, when enemy forces attacked his unit near the Chosin Reservoir,
North Korea.
His remains could not be recovered following the attack.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes purported to contain the remains
of American service members killed during the Korean War.
The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Ramirez’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Ramirez’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who
are missing from the Korean War.
A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Ramirez will be buried March 19, 2020 in Marana,
Arizona.
Navy Seaman 2nd Class Cecil H. Thornton,
21, from Mississippi killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Thornton was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Thornton.
Navy Seaman 1st Class Warren C. Gillette, 21, Weld County, Colorado killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Gillette was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Gillette.
Navy Fireman 2nd Class Martin D. Young, 21, of Louisville, Kentucky, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Young was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Young.
Navy Fireman 2nd Class Joseph W. Carroll, 20, Fairmont, West Virginia. killed during World War II, was accounted for.
Shortly after graduating from high school, Joseph enlisted in the
Navy on November 7, 1940, in Baltimore, Maryland at the age of 20. New recruits
started out as seamen, who usually did the worst jobs around the ship. With the
war looming, the Navy didn't have time to train these troops in all facets of
their duties, so they were trained on the ship.
Once the seaman managed to get promoted to the next rank, his training became
more specific. Joseph's rank, fireman 2nd class, worked specifically in fire
suppression.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Carroll was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Carroll.
U.S. Navy Fireman 1st Class Dan E.
Reagan, 20, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Reagan was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it
to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429
crewmen, including Reagan.
Navy Seaman 1st Class Joe R. Nightingale, 20,
Kalamazoo, Michigan
killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Nightingale was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Nightingale.
Navy Hospital Apprentice 1st Class John
M. Mulick, 21, Iowa, killed during World War II, was accounted for on
Nov. 18, 2019.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Mulick was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Mulick.
Navy Fireman 2nd Class William P. Kubinec, 21, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Kubinec was assigned to the battleship USS West
Virginia, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, when the ship
was attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The ship sustained multiple torpedo hits, but timely counter-flooding measures taken by the crew prevented it from capsizing, and it came to rest on the shallow harbor floor.
The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 106 crewmen, including Kubinec.
Army Pvt. Horace H. Middleton, 20, of
Northumberland, Pennsylvania, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In the spring and summer of 1944, Middleton, an infantryman, was
a member of Company F, 2nd Battalion, 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), also
known as Merrill’s Marauders. After taking the airfield in Myitkyina, Burma,
from the Japanese on May 17, Middleton’s battalion was tasked with holding the
airfield and taking part in the siege of Myitkyina. Middleton was reported to
have been killed during fighting on July 12.
The remains of servicemen killed during the battle were buried in
at least eight different temporary cemeteries and numerous isolated burial
locations. Eventually, all known burials were concentrated into the U.S.
Military Cemetery at Myitkyina, including the remains of those who were not
identified. In January and February 1946, all of the remains at the U.S.
Military Cemetery were disinterred and transferred to the U.S. Military Cemetery
at Kalaikunda, India. The exhumation of the U.S. Military Cemetery at Kalaikunda
was conducted in September and October 1947.
One set of remains, designated Unknown X-63 Kalaikunda, was
unable to be identified and was subsequently buried in the National Memorial
Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu, in March 1949.
On Sept. 17, 2018, DPAA disinterred Unknown X-63 Kalaikunda from
the Punchbowl and accessioned the remains into the DPAA laboratory at Joint Base
Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.
To identify Middleton’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally,
the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)
analysis.
Middleton will be buried April 18, 2020, in
Milton, Pennsylvania.
Army Cpl. Arthur C. Ramirez, 19, Pima, Arizona killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Ramirez was a member of Battery B, 57th Field
Artillery Battalion, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on
Dec. 6, 1950,
when enemy forces attacked his unit near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. His
remains could not be recovered following the attack.
U.S. Army Sgt. John V. Phillips, 25, of Cassville,
Missouri, who
was captured and died as a prisoner of war during World War II, was accounted
for.
In 1941, Phillips was a member of Headquarters Company, 31st
Infantry Regiment, when Japanese forces invaded the Philippine Islands in
December.
Intense fighting continued until the surrender of the Bataan
peninsula on April 9, 1942, and of Corregidor Island on May 6, 1942.
Thousands of U.S. and Filipino service members were captured and
interned at POW camps. Phillips was among those reported captured after the
surrender of Corregidor and held at the Cabanatuan POW camp.
More than 2,500 POWs perished in this camp during the war.
According to prison camp and other historical
records, Phillips died July 27, 1942, and was buried along with other deceased
prisoners in the local Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery, in Common Grave 225.
Following the war, American Graves Registration Service (AGRS)
personnel exhumed those buried at the Cabanatuan cemetery and relocated the
remains to a temporary U.S. military mausoleum near Manila. In late 1947, the
AGRS examined the remains in an attempt to identify them. Due to the
circumstances of the POW deaths and burials, the extensive commingling, and the
limited identification technologies of the time, all of the remains could not be
individually identified. The unidentified remains were interred as “unknowns” in
the present-day Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.
In March 2018, remains associated with Common Grave 225 were
disinterred and sent to the DPAA laboratory at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam,
Hawaii, for analysis.
To identify Phillips’ remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA
(mtDNA) analysis.
Phillips will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.
Army Pvt. Charlie M. Waid, 26, of Chico,
California, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In 1942, Waid was serving in the Medical Detachment of the 31st
Infantry Regiment when Japanese forces invaded the Philippine Islands. Intense
fighting continued until the surrender of the Bataan peninsula on April 9, 1942,
and of Corregidor Island on May 6, 1942.
Thousands of U.S. and Filipino service members were taken
prisoner and sent to prisoner of war camps.
Waid was among those reported captured
after the surrender of Corregidor and held at the Cabanatuan POW camp.
More than 2,500 POWs perished in this camp during the war.
According to prison camp and other historical records,
Waid died Nov. 19, 1942, and was buried along with
fellow prisoners in the local Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery in grave number 717.
Following the war, American Graves Registration Service (AGRS)
personnel exhumed those buried at the Cabanatuan cemetery and relocated the
remains to a temporary U.S. military mausoleum near Manila. In late 1947, the
AGRS examined the remains in an attempt to identify them. Due to the
circumstances of the POW deaths and burials, the extensive commingling, and the
limited identification technologies of the time, all of the remains could not be
individually identified. The unidentified remains were interred as “unknowns” in
the present-day Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.
In 2014, the “unknown” remains associated with Common Grave 717
were disinterred and sent to the DPAA laboratory for analysis, including one
set, designated X-4852 Manila Mausoleum.
To identify Waid’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Waid will be buried in Hollywood Hills,
California.
Army Pvt. Roy Brown, Jr., 22, of Des
Moines, Iowa, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 2, 1942, Brown was a member of Company I, 126th Infantry
Regiment, 32nd Infantry Division, when his unit was forced into intense
engagement with Japanese forces in the vicinity of Soputa-Sanananda Track in the
Australian Territory of Papua (present-day Papua New Guinea). Brown was reported
missing and presumed dead when he could not be accounted for by his unit.
On Feb. 2, 1943, the remains of an unidentified American Soldier
were interred at the U.S. Temporary Cemetery Sanananda #2. On April 6, 1943, the
remains, designated Unknown X-72 were reinterred at Temporary Cemetery #1 at
Soputa,
then moved them to U.S. Armed Forces Finschhafen #2, where they were
redesignated X-1086.
In 1947, the American Graves Registration service exhumed
approximately 11,000 graves, including X-1086, and sent the remains to the
Central Identification Point at the Manila Mausoleum in the Philippines.
X-1086 could not be identified and were interred at Fort McKinley (now the
Manila American Cemetery and Memorial).
In May 2017, Unknown X-1086 was disinterred, and the remains were
sent to the DPAA laboratory in Offutt, Nebraska, for analysis.
To identify Brown’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA
(mtDNA) analysis.
Brown will be buried in his hometown.
Army Cpl. William L. Brown, 18, of
Sesser, Illinois, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Brown was a member of Company B, 1st Battalion,
32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action
Dec. 2, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea,
when his unit was attacked by enemy forces. Following the battle, his remains
could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Brown’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical
Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Brown’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who
are missing from the Korean War.
A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been
accounted for.
Brown will be buried in Mound City, Illinois.
U.S. Army Pvt. Pearl F. Barrow, 36, of
Wichita, Kansas, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Nov. 20, 1944, Barrow was assigned to Company F, 12th Infantry
Regiment, 4th Infantry Division. His unit was engaged in battle with German
forces near Hürtgen, Germany, when he was reported as killed in action.
However, his remains were never recovered.
Army Pfc. Junior C. Evans, 20, of Hall
County, Texas, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Evans was a member of Company I, 3rd Battalion,
31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action
on Dec. 12, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea.
However, accurate accountability of troops was often difficult due to the
chaotic environment and Evans likely went missing during a battle between Nov.
27 and Dec. 6, 1950. Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Evans’ remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.
Evans’ name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with the others who
are missing from the Korean War.
A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Evans will be buried in Gilmer, Texas.
Army Cpl. William J. McCollum, 19, of
Anderson, South Carolina, killed during the Korean War, was accounted
for.
In late 1950, McCollum was a member of Company D, 1st Battalion,
32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, 31st Regimental Combat Team. He
was reported missing in action Dec. 2, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin
Reservoir,
North Korea, when his unit was attacked by enemy forces. Following the war, his
remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify McCollum’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.
McCollum will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.
Pilot
U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Lowell S.
Twedt, 27, of Le Grand, Iowa, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In the fall of 1944, Twedt was a pilot assigned to the 71st
Fighter Squadron, 1st Fighter Group. On Oct. 20, he piloted a P-38J “Lightning”
aircraft as part of an escort for a B-17 “Flying Fortress” bombing mission
targeting oil storage tanks in Regensburg, Germany. The mission encountered
enemy anti-aircraft fire around Bolzano, Italy.
Three P-38Js, including Twedt’s, went down as a result. An eyewitness account
saw Twedt’s aircraft falling to the ground in flames, and did not see him eject.
Twedt’s remains were never recovered.
In 2017, Roland Domanig, a retired physics professor from Austria
who had helped DPAA in the past, contacted the agency with news that he had
found wreckage of a P-38 he believed to be Twedt’s. Over the course of the next
two years,
DPAA investigated and excavated the site, recovering remains in September 2019
that were sent to the DPAA laboratory in Offutt, Nebraska, for identification.
To identify Twedt’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis, as well as material and circumstantial evidence.
Twedt will be buried in Fernly, Nevada.
Marine Corps Pfc. Louis Wiesehan, Jr.,
20, of Richmond, Indiana, killed during World War II, was accounted
for.
In November 1943, Wiesehan was a member of Company F, 2nd
Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, which landed against stiff
Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the
Gilbert Islands
in an attempt to secure the island. Over several days of intense fighting at
Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and Sailors were killed and more than 2,000
were wounded, while the Japanese were virtually annihilated.
Wiesehan was killed on the second day of
the battle, Nov. 21, 1943.
His remains were reportedly buried in Division Cemetery on Betio Island.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa at Lone Palm Cemetery
for later repatriation; however, almost half of the known casualties were never
found.
No recovered remains could be associated with Wiesehan, and in
October 1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In 2014, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization, located
Cemetery 27. Excavations of the site uncovered multiple sets of remains, which
were turned over to DPAA in 2015.
To identify Wiesehan’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as material evidence. Additionally, scientists
from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)
analysis.
DPAA is grateful to the United States Marine Corps for their
assistance in this mission. Additionally, DPAA is appreciative to History
Flight, Inc., for their partnership in this mission.
*Wiesehan will be buried April 18, 2020, in his hometown.
Air Force Maj. Neal C. Ward, 23, of
College Station, Texas, killed during the Vietnam War, was accounted
for.
In June 1969, Ward was a pilot assigned to the 602nd Special
Operations Squadron. On June 13, 1969, Ward was piloting an A-1H aircraft as the
lead in a flight of two on an armed reconnaissance mission in northern Laos.
Both aircraft made four bombing runs on a target, after which Ward started a
strafing run. His wingman followed but broke off when he could not complete his
run without entering the clouds.
During his recovery, the wingman saw automatic weapons muzzle flashes coming
from the target area, followed immediately by a large fire and explosion.
The wingman could not make contact with Ward and did not observe a parachute or
hear any distress calls.
The wingman made a pass over the target area and saw debris, but
was unable to identify it as aircraft wreckage. Because of hostile enemy
activity, a ground search could not be conducted. On June 20, 1978, the
Department of the Air Force changed Ward’s status to deceased.
Between 1993 and 2008, joint U.S./Lao People’s Democratic
Republic teams investigated a crash site allegedly associated with Ward’s loss,
recommending it for excavation.
The site was excavated and teams recovered possible human remains and personal
items. The remains were sent to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Ward’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as material and circumstantial evidence.
Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA
(mtDNA) analysis.
*Ward will be buried in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. The date has yet to be determined.
Marine Corps Reserve 1st Lt. Justin G. Mills, 25,
Galveston, Texas
killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa to Lone Palm Cemetery
for later repatriation. However, almost half of the known casualties were never
found. No recovered remains could be associated with Mills, and, in October
1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In 2014, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization,
identified a site correlated with the Central Division Cemetery. Excavations of
the site uncovered multiple sets of remains, which were turned over to DPAA in
2015, where they were subsequently accessioned to the DPAA laboratory.
To identify Mills’ remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
*Mills will be buried April 29, 2020, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.
Marine
Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Arthur B.
Summers, 27, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In November 1943, Summers was a member of Company I, 3rd
Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which
landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio
in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands, in an attempt to secure the island.
Over several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were virtually annihilated.
Summers was killed on the fourth day of the battle, Nov. 23, 1943. His remains were reportedly buried in Cemetery 33.
Navy Seaman 2nd Class Lloyd R. Timm, 19,
of Kellogg, Minnesota, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Timm was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Timm.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Timm.
Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS
Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.
To identify Timm’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical
Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
analysis.
*Timm will be buried May 25, 2020 in Wabasha, Minnesota.
Army 1st Lt. Robert C. Styslinger, 28,
of Pittsburgh, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Styslinger served with Battery B, 57th Field
Artillery Battalion, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported to have been killed
in action Nov. 29, 1950 while fighting enemy forces near Hagaru-ri, Chosin
Reservoir, North Korea.
His remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Styslinger’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Army
Pfc. John A. Shelemba, 19,
Hamtramck, Michigan
killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
U.S. Army Sgt. Maximiano T. Lacsamana,
37, of Macabebe, Pampanga, Philippines, killed during the Korean War,
was accounted for.
In late 1950, Lacsamana, a veteran of the Philippine Scouts
during World War II, was a member of Company I, 3rd Battalion, 31st Regimental
Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division.
His unit was engaged in intense fighting with the Chinese
People's Volunteer Forces near Hagaru-ri, North Korea. He was reported missing
in action Dec. 3, 1950. Following the war, his remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War.
The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on
Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for
identification.
To identify Lacsamana’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.
Army Cpl. Jerome V. Hummel, 23, of St.
Louis, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Hummel was a member of Heavy Mortar Company, 31st
Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on
Nov. 30, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea,
when his unit was attacked by enemy forces.
Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Hummel’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed
Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Army Cpl. Jackey D. Blosser, 21, of
Randolph County, West Virginia, killed during the Korean War, was
accounted for.
In late 1950, Blosser was a member of Dog Company, 1st Battalion,
32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division.
He was reported missing in action Dec. 2, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, after his unit was attacked by enemy forces.
His remains could not be recovered following the battle. After
the war, no returned prisoners of war reported seeing him in any camps.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War.
The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Blosser’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosomal DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
and analysis.
Soldier
U.S. Army Sgt. John V. Phillips, 25,
Kern
County, California
who
was captured and died in captivity during World War II, was accounted for.
(This official DoD release will be updated
following the primary next of kin briefing.)
In 1942, Phillips was a member of Headquarters Company, 31st
Infantry Regiment, when Japanese forces invaded the Philippine Islands.
Intense fighting continued until the surrender of the Bataan peninsula on April 9, 1942, and of Corregidor Island on May 6, 1942.
Phillips was among those reported captured after the surrender of
Corregidor and held at the Cabanatuan POW camp.
Thousands of U.S. and Filipino service members were captured and interned at POW
camps.
More than 2,500 POWs perished in this camp during the war.
U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. George M.
Johnson, 23, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
(This official DoD release will be updated following the primary
next of kin briefing.)
On Jan. 21, 1944, Johnson was a member of the 38th Bombardment
Squadron, 30th Bombardment Group, stationed at Hawkins Field, Betio Island,
Tarawa Atoll, Gilbert Islands,
when the B-24J bomber aircraft he was co-piloting crashed into Tarawa lagoon
shortly after takeoff.
Johnson and the nine other servicemen aboard the aircraft were killed.
Army Pfc. William J. Winchester, 20, of
Mount Hope, Alabama, who was captured and died in captivity during
the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Winchester was a member of Company D, 1st
Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division.
He was captured by enemy forces near Unsan, North Korea in November 1950.
He reportedly died while in custody of the
Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces at Prisoner of War Camp #5 in February 1951.
On 1954, During Operation Glory, North Korea unilaterally turned
over remains to the United States, including one set, designated Unknown X-13442
Operation Glory. The remains were reportedly recovered from prisoner of war
camps, United Nations cemeteries and isolated burial sites. None of the remains
could be identified as Winchester and he was declared non-recoverable. The
remains were subsequently buried as an unknown in the National Memorial Cemetery
of the Pacific in Honolulu.
On June 11, 2018, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
disinterred X-13442 Operation Glory and accessioned the remains to the
laboratory.
To identify Winchester’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
dental, anthropological and chest radiograph comparison analysis, as well as
circumstantial and material evidence.
Marine
Marine Corps Reserve Pvt. William E.
Rambo, 20, of LaPorte, Indiana, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In November 1943, Rambo was a member of Company H, 2nd Battalion,
8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which landed
against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa
Atoll of the Gilbert Islands, in an attempt to secure the island. Over several
days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and Sailors were
killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were virtually
annihilated.
Rambo was killed on the first day of the battle,
Nov. 20, 1943. His remains were reportedly buried in Cemetery 27 on Betio
Island.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa to Lone Palm Cemetery
for later repatriation; however, almost half of the known casualties were never
found. No recovered remains could be associated with Rambo, and in October 1949,
a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In 2015, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization, notified
DPAA that they discovered Cemetery #27. In 2015, following continued
excavations, a previously undiscovered burial trench was uncovered.
The remains were accessioned into the DPAA laboratory in February 2017.
To identify Rambo’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
December 5
Navy Seaman 1st Class Orval A. Tranbarger, 20, from
Missouri,
killed
during World War II, was accounted for.
(This official DoD release will be updated
following the next of kin briefing.)
On Dec. 7, 1941, Tranbarger was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Tranbarger.
December 5
U.S. Navy Fireman 1st Class Leo T. Keninger, 20,
Franklin County, Iowa,
killed during World War II, was accounted for.
(This official DoD release will be updated
following the next of kin briefing.)
On Dec. 7, 1941, Keninger was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Keninger.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Riley Burchfield,
22, Cuyahoga, Ohio
killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Burchfield was a member of Company D, 1st
Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division. He was captured by
enemy forces near Kunu-ri, North Korea on Nov. 26, 1950.
He reportedly died while in custody of the
Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces at Prisoner of War Camp 5 in February 1951.
In 1954, during Operation Glory, North Korea unilaterally turned
over remains to the United States, including a set designated Unknown X-13439
Operation Glory. The remains were reportedly recovered from prisoner of war
camps, United Nations cemeteries and isolated burial sites. None of the remains
could be identified as Burchfield and he was declared non-recoverable. The
remains were subsequently buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the
Pacific in Honolulu.
In 2018, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency disinterred
X-13439 Operation Glory as part of the Korean War Disinterment Plan and
accessioned the remains to the laboratory.
To identify Burchfield’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
dental, anthropological and chest radiograph comparison analysis, as well as
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed
Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA
(auSTR) analysis.
Army Air Forces 1st Lt. Steve Nagy, 23, Lorain County, Ohio killed during World War II, was accounted for.
Navy Quartermaster 2nd Class Daryle E. Artley, 21, Haywood, Nebraska killed during World War II, was accounted for.
Army Master Sgt. Harold F. Drews, 21,
Illinois
killed
during the Korean War, was accounted for.
(This official release will be updated following
the primary next of kin briefing.)
In December 1950, Drews was assigned to King Company, 3rd
Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. For several days, his
unit was engaged in intense fighting with the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces
near the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea.
Drews went missing in action on Dec. 12, 1950. His remains could not be recovered.
Navy Chief Water Tender Francis D. Day,
37, of Milburn, New Jersey, killed during World War II, was accounted
for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Day was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma,
which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by
Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which
caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of
429 crewmen, including Day.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Day.
Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS
Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.
To identify Day’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and
anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical
Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Airmen
U.S. Army Air Forces Tech. Sgt. Charles G. Ruble, 20, of Parker City, Indiana, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
Navy Fire Controlman 3rd Class Adolph J.
Loebach, 22, of Peru, Illinois, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Loebach was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Loebach.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Loebach.
Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS
Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.
To identify Loebach’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.
November 25
Navy Fireman 1st Class Lawrence E.
Woods, 28, of Greenwood, Texas, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Woods was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Woods.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time.
The AGRS subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots
at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl,
in Honolulu. In October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be
identified as non-recoverable, including Woods.
Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS
Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.
To identify Woods’ remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical
Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Army Cpl. Gerald N. Wilson, 19, of
Camden, Missouri, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In the summer of 1950, Wilson was a member of Company F, 2nd
Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. He was last seen July 25,
1950, while participating in the defense of Yongdong, South Korea. Following the
battle, his remains could not be recovered.
Following the war, the 565th Quartermaster Graves Registration
Company recovered a set of remains, designated Unknown X-1044 Tanggok from Ulgok,
South Korea. The remains were declared unidentifiable and were subsequently
buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl,
in Honolulu.
On June 11, 2018, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
disinterred X-1044 Tanggok and accessioned the remains to the laboratory.
To identify Wilson’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental,
anthropological and chest radiograph comparison analysis, as well as
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed
Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA
(auSTR) analysis.
U.S. Army Pvt. William D. Hedtke, 28, of
Iola, Wisconsin, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In 1944, Hedtke was assigned to Battery B, 319th Glider Artillery
Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division. Army officials reported he died of injuries
sustained in a hard glider landing near Groesbeek, Netherlands, during Operation
Market Garden on Sept. 18, 1944. His remains were not recovered after the war.
In June 1945, Canadian graves registration personnel recovered a
set of American remains near Groesbeek that were given to the American Graves
Registration Command (AGRC). After unsuccessful efforts by the AGRC to identify
the remains, they were designated X-1230 Margraten and interred as an Unknown at
the Netherlands American Cemetery.
In 2016, DPAA disinterred X-1230 to be scientifically analyzed
for possible association to an Operation Market Garden casualty.
To identify Hedtke’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces
Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosomal (Y-STR)
analysis.
Navy Fireman 1st Class Bethel E.
Walters, 25, of Bellevue, Texas, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Walters was assigned to the battleship USS West
Virginia, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS West Virginia sustained multiple torpedo
hits, but timely counter-flooding measures taken by the crew prevented it from
capsizing, and it came to rest on the shallow harbor floor. The attack resulted
in the deaths of 106 crewmen, including Walters.
During efforts to salvage the USS West Virginia, Navy personnel
recovered the remains of the deceased crewmen, representing at least 66
individuals. Those who could not be identified, including Walters, were interred
as unknowns at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the
Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
From June through October 2017, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting
Agency, in cooperation with cemetery officials, disinterred 35 caskets, reported
to be associated with the USS West Virginia, from the Punchbowl and transferred
the remains to the laboratory for identification.
To identify Walters’ remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR), and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Navy Seaman 1st Class Stewart Jordan,
20, of Coeburn, Virginia, killed during World War II, was accounted
for.
In 1944, Jordan was assigned to the USS Nelson, which was
anchored off the coast of Normandy, France. He was killed June 12, 1944, when
the ship was hit by enemy fire. Following the war, his remains could not be
identified.
On Nov. 3, 1944, a graves registration team learned of remains
that had washed ashore on “Roger White Beach,” in Normandy. The remains were
noted to have a tattoo on the arm, depicting the sinking of the USS Tucker,
where Jordan had been assigned prior to its sinking in August 1942. The remains
were declared unidentifiable and designated as Unknown X-144 Sainte-Mère-Église
#2, and were subsequently interred in what is now the Normandy American
Cemetery. Of the 13 crew members unaccounted for from the USS Nelson, two
previously served on the USS Tucker, including Jordan.
In September 2018, DPAA and the American Battle Monuments
Commission exhumed X-144 and accessioned the remains to the laboratory.
To identify Jordan’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis. Additionally, the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Navy Fireman 1st Class Rex E. Wise, 21,
Braman Kay County Oklahoma
killed during World War II, was accounted for.
(This official DoD release will be updated
following the primary next of kin briefing.)
On Dec. 7, 1941, Wise was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Wise.
Marine Corps Pfc. Edward A. Nalazek, 27,
of Chicago, killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In November 1943, Nalazek was a member of Company D, 2nd
Battalion, 18th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which
landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the
Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands, in an attempt to secure the island. Over
several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and
Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were
virtually annihilated.
Nalazek was killed on the second day of the
battle, Nov. 21, 1943. His remains were reportedly buried in the Central
Division Cemetery 8th Marines #2 on Betio Island.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
(604th GRC) centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa to Lone Palm
Cemetery for later repatriation; however, almost half of the known casualties
were never found. No recovered remains could be associated with Nalazek, and in
October 1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In June 1967, construction at the site of the Marine/Customs
office block at the Betio Wharf uncovered multiple sets of remains, as well as
American equipment. The remains were sent to the U.S. Army Mortuary at Tachikawa
Air Base, Japan, and accessioned as Unknown XJ-1323. A number of remains were
identified as Japanese. However, XJ-1323A-G were determined to be American. The
remains could not be identified, and were subsequently buried in the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
In 2015, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization,
excavated a site near the wharf on Betio Island, later identified as Cemetery
27. Remains recovered were accessioned to the DPAA laboratory.
On Nov. 21, 2016, DPAA disinterred XJ-1323 from the Punchbowl,
and associated portions of XJ-1323B with portions recovered by History Flight in
2015.
To identify Nalazek’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Navy Fireman 1st Class Andrew J. Schmitz, 22,
Henrico County, Virginia,
killed during World War II, was accounted for.
(This official DoD release will be updated
following the primary next of kin briefing.)
On Dec. 7, 1941, Schmitz was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Schmitz.
Army Cpl. Wilfred K. Hussey, Jr., 19, Hilo - Big Island, Hawaii killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
Army Cpl. Asa (Bud) E. Vance, 18, Decatur, Illinois killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Vance’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed
Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA),
Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) and analysis.
Marine
Marine Corps Reserve Pfc. Alfred
Edwards, 33 of Stilwell, Oklahoma, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In November 1943, Edwards was a member of Company E, 2nd
Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which
landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the
Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands, in an attempt to secure the island. Over
several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and
Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were
virtually annihilated.
Edwards was killed on the first day
of the battle, Nov. 20, 1943. His remains were reportedly buried in the
East Division Cemetery, later renamed Cemetery 33 on Betio Island.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
(604th GRC) centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa to Lone Palm
Cemetery for later repatriation; however, almost half of the known casualties
were never found.
No recovered remains could be associated with Edwards, and in
October 1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.” The remains that
could not be identified, were subsequently buried in the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu,
including two sets, designated Tarawa Unknown X-203 and X-209.
On March 27, 2017, DPAA disinterred X-203 from the Punchbowl, and
on April 3, 2017, DPAA disinterred X-209. The remains were sent to the DPAA
laboratory for analysis,
where anthropologists determined X-203 and X-209 were associated with each
other.
To identify Edwards’ remains, scientists from DPAA used dental,
anthropological and chest radiograph comparison analysis, as well as
circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Navy Fireman 3rd Class Welborn L. Ashby,
24, of Louisville, Kentucky, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
(This official DoD release will be updated
following the primary next of kin briefing.)
On Dec. 7, 1941, Ashby was assigned to the battleship USS West
Virginia, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, when the ship
was attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The ship sustained multiple torpedo hits, but timely counter-flooding measures taken by the crew prevented it from capsizing, and it came to rest on the shallow harbor floor.
The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 106 crewmen, including Ashby.
Marine
Marine Corps Reserve Pfc. John R. Bayens,
20, of Louisville, Kentucky, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In November 1943, Bayens was a member of Company B, 1st
Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which
landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the
Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands in an attempt to secure the island.
Over several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and
Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were
virtually annihilated.
Bayens was killed on the third day of the
battle, Nov. 22, 1943. His remains were reportedly buried in Cemetery 33
on Betio Island.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa at Lone Palm Cemetery
for later repatriation; however, almost half of the known casualties were never
found. No recovered remains could be associated with Bayens, and in October
1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In 2014, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization,
identified Cemetery 33. Excavations of the site uncovered multiple sets of
remains, which were turned over to DPAA in 2015.
To identify Bayens’ remains, scientists from DPAA used dental,
anthropological, and chest radiograph comparison analysis, as well as material
evidence.
Army Pfc. Wilbur T. Tackett, 18, of
Alger, Ohio, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Tackett was a member of Battery B, 57th Field
Artillery Battalion, 31st Regimental Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division. He was
reported missing in action on Dec. 6, 1950, when enemy forces attacked his unit
near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. His remains could not be recovered
following the attack.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018,
and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Tackett’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used
mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Navy Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class Arnold
M. Nielsen, 32, of Oakland, California, killed during World War II,
was accounted for.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Nielsen was assigned to the battleship USS
Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was
attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits,
which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the
deaths of 429 crewmen, including Nielsen.
From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the
remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and
Nu’uanu Cemeteries.
In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen
U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves
Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the
two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at
Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the
identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS
subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National
Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In
October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as
non-recoverable, including Nielsen.
Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS
Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.
To identify Nielsen’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed
Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Soldier Killed
Army Cpl. Autrey J. Betar, 18, of Port
Arthur, Texas, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Betar was a member of Company A, 1st Battalion,
32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, 31st Regimental Combat Team.
He was reported missing in action on Dec. 2, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin
Reservoir, North Korea, when his unit was attacked by enemy forces. Following
the battle, his remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam,
Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA
laboratory for identification.
To identify Betar’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and analysis.
Airmen
U.S. Army Air Forces Tech. Sgt. Max. W.
Lower, 23, of Lewiston, Utah, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In the summer of 1943, Lower was assigned to the 345th
Bombardment Squadron, 98th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 9th Air Force. On Aug. 1,
1943, the B-24 aircraft on which Lower was the radio operator crashed as a
result of enemy anti-aircraft fire during Operation Tidal Wave, the largest
bombing mission against the oil fields and refineries at Ploiesti, north of
Bucharest, Romania.
Following the operation, the Romanian government reported they
had recovered 216 Americans killed in the raid, 27 of whom were identifiable.
His remains were not among the 27. Those not identified were buried as Unknowns
in the Hero Section of the Civilian and Military Cemetery of Bolovan, Ploiesti,
Prahova, Romania.
Following the war, the American Graves Registration Command, the
organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel,
disinterred all American remains from the Bolovan Cemetery for identification.
Each unidentified set of remains was designated Unknown and reinterred into the
American Military Cemetery at Neuville-en-Condroz, Belgium.
In 2017, DPAA began exhuming unknowns believed to be associated
with unaccounted for airmen from Operation Tidal Wave losses.
That year, 15 sets of remains were disinterred and sent to the laboratory for
analysis.
To identify Lower’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical
Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR)
analysis.
Soldier Killed
Army Cpl. Joe T. Avant, 20, of
Greenwood, Mississippi, killed during the Korean War, was accounted
for.
In late 1950, Avant was a member of Heavy Mortar Company, 31st
Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, 31st Regimental Combat Team. He was
reported missing in action Nov. 30, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin
Reservoir, North Korea,
when his unit was attacked by enemy forces. Following the battle, his remains
could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War.
The remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on
Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for
identification.
To identify Avant’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) and analysis.
Army Cpl. Kenneth E. Ford, 18, of Albia,
Iowa, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In late 1950, Ford was a member of Company C, 1st Battalion, 32nd
Infantry Regiment. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 2, 1950, in the
vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, when his unit was attacked by
enemy forces.
Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered.
North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the
remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The remains
arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii
on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for
identification.
To identify Ford’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed
Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) and autosomal DNA (auSTR)
analysis.
Army Pfc. Karl L. Dye,
17, of Marion, Ohio,
killed during the Korean War, was accounted for.
In July 1950, Dye was a member of Battery B, 52nd Field Artillery
Battalion, 24th Infantry Division, engaged in combat operations against
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea forces near Taejon, South Korea.
According to a witness, he was seriously wounded by an enemy mortar shell and
placed in an ambulance. The ambulance allegedly encountered an enemy roadblock.
Dye was reported missing in action on July 16, 1950.
In October 1950, one set of remains, designated “Unknown X-159
Taejon,” was recovered in the vicinity of Taejon. Despite several attempts, the
remains could not be identified and were subsequently sent to the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu,
where they were buried as an Unknown.
On Oct. 16, 2017, Unknown X-159 was disinterred from the
Punchbowl and sent to the DPAA laboratory.
To identify Dye’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental,
anthropological and chest radiograph comparison analysis, as well as and
circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA
(mtDNA) analysis.
Army Cpl. Leon E. Clevenger, 21, of
Durham, North Carolina, killed during the Korean War, was accounted
for.
In the summer of 1950, Clevenger was an infantryman with Company
K, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was
reported missing in action on July 11, 1950, while involved in combat operations
against the North Korean People’s Army in the vicinity of Chonui and Choch’iwon,
South Korea.
The Army amended his status to deceased in December 1953 when
there was no updated information regarding his status.
In November 1951, a U.S. Army Graves Registration Team recovered
the remains of an unidentified American near the village of Kalgo-ri,
approximately three miles from Clevenger’s last known location.
The remains were taken to the United States Military Cemetery Tanggok for
possible identification, and were later sent to the Central Identification Unit
at Kokura, Japan, as Unknown X-2258 Tanggok for further processing.
The remains, which could not be identified, were subsequently
buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl,
in Honolulu.
In December 2018, the Department of Defense disinterred X-2258
and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Clevenger’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System
used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Marine Corps Reserve Pfc. Jack B. Van Zandt, 21, Rossville, Illinois killed during World War II, was accounted for.
In November 1943, Van Zandt was a member of Company A, 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands in an attempt to secure the island. Over several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were virtually annihilated.
Van Zandt was killed on the third day of
the battle, Nov. 22, 1943. His remains were reportedly buried in East
Division Cemetery on Betio Island.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa at Lone Palm Cemetery
for later repatriation; however, almost half of the known casualties were never
found.
No recovered remains could be associated with Van Zandt, and in
October 1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In 2014, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization, located
a site correlated with Cemetery 33. Excavations of the site uncovered multiple
sets of remains, which were turned over to DPAA in 2015,
where they were subsequently accessioned to the laboratory.
To identify Van Zandt’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental
and anthropological analysis, as well as material evidence.
Marine Corps Reserve Pfc. Michael Kocopy,
20, of Gardendale, Pennsylvania, killed during World War II, was
accounted for.
In November 1943, Kocopy was a member of Company E, 2nd
Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, which
landed against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the
Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands, in an attempt to secure the island. Over
several days of intense fighting at Tarawa, approximately 1,000 Marines and
Sailors were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded, while the Japanese were
virtually annihilated.
Kocopy was killed on the first day of the
battle, Nov. 20, 1943. His remains were reportedly buried in the Central
Division Cemetery on Betio Island.
In 1946, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company
centralized all of the American remains found on Tarawa to Lone Palm Cemetery
for later repatriation. However, almost half of the known casualties were never
found. No recovered remains could be associated with Kocopy, and in October
1949, a Board of Review declared him “non-recoverable.”
In 2014, History Flight, Inc., a nonprofit organization,
identified a site correlated with Cemetery 26. Excavations of the site uncovered
multiple sets of remains, which were turned over to DPAA in 2015,
where they were subsequently accessioned to the DPAA laboratory.
To identify Kocopy’s remains, scientists from DPAA used
anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence.
Additionally,
scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA
(mtDNA) analysis.
November 6
