Another Seven Are Home

DPAA has identified and accounted for the following formerly-missing US personnel.

From World War II

F1c Hadley I. Heavin, US Navy, assigned to the crew of the USS West Virginia, was lost at Pearl Harbor, HI, on 7 December 1941. His accounting was announced on 20 November 2019.

F1c Andrew J. Schmitz, US Navy, assigned to the crew of the USS Oklahoma, was lost at Pearl Harbor, HI, on 7 December 1941. His accounting was announced on 21 November 2019.

F1c Rex E. Wise, US Navy, assigned to the crew of the USS Oklahoma, was lost at Pearl Harbor, HI, on 7 December 1941. His accounting was announced for on 22 November 2019.

F3c Welborn L. Ashby, US Navy, assigned to the crew of the USS West Virginia, was lost at Pearl Harbor, HI, on 7 December 1941. His accounting was announced on 20 November 2019.

Pfc Alfred Edwards, USMC Reserve, assigned to Company E, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, was lost on Tarawa on 20 November 1943. His accounting was announced on 21 November 2019.

Pfc Edward A. Nalazek, USMC, assigned to Company D, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, was lost on Tarawa on 21 November 1943. His accounting was announced on 21 November 2019.

From Korea

SGT Maximiano T. Lacsamana, US Army, assigned to I Company, 3rd Battalion, 31st Regimental Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division, was lost in North Korea on 3 December 1950. His accounting was announced on 20 November 2019.

From Southeast Asia

None

Welcome back, elder brothers-in-arms. Our apologies that your return took so long.

Rest easy. You’re home now.

. . .

Over 72,000 US personnel remain unaccounted for from World War II; over 7,600 US personnel remain unaccounted for from the Korean War; over 1,500 remain unaccounted for in Southeast Asia (SEA); 126 remain unaccounted for from the Cold War; 5 remain unaccounted for from the Gulf Wars; and 1 individual remains unaccounted for from Operation Eldorado Canyon. Comparison of DNA from recovered remains against DNA from some (but not all) blood relatives can assist in making a positive ID for unidentified remains that have already been recovered, or which may be recovered in the future.

On their web site’s Contact Us page DPAA now has FAQs. One of those FAQs describes who can and cannot submit DNA samples useful in identifying recovered remains. The chart giving the answer can be viewed here. The text associated with the chart is short and is found in one of the FAQs.

If your family lost someone in one of these conflicts and you qualify to submit a DNA sample, please arrange to submit one. By doing that you just might help identify the remains of a US service member who’s been repatriated but not yet been identified – as well as a relative of yours, however distant. Or you may help to identify remains to be recovered in the future.

Everybody deserves a proper burial. That’s especially true for those who gave their all while serving this nation.

Category: No Longer Missing