VANDALISM OF USS EMMONS SPARKS OUTRAGE
Fox News
Monday , September 27, 2010
By Matt Sanchez
The destroyer mine sweeper USS Emmons (DMS-22,
ex-DD-457) served the United States proudly
through World War II, right up until April 6,
1945, when it was attacked by a number of
kamikaze pilots off the coast of Okinawa. (Many
aircraft were splashed, but Emmons was struck by
five, almost simultaneously. One hit her fantail,
the rest to starboard of her pilot house, of No.
3 gun mount, on her waterline, aft, and the port
side of her combat information center. Crippled
and ablaze, with ammunition exploding wholesale,
Emmons found damage control a desperate, losing
struggle. That day her gallant crew, who had
already won the Navy Unit Commendation for
Okinawa, lost 60 dead, 77 wounded.) One day
later, the U.S. Navy sank the destroyer to
prevent it from falling into the hands of the Japanese.
The bodies of 60 American sailors went down with the ship.
For 65 years, the Emmons lay peacefully on the
ocean floor, guns raised skyward — until
recently, when divers discovered that the ship
had been vandalized. Its builder's plaque — the
metal plate and vessel’s "birth certificate" — had been removed.
To veterans, it's like robbing a grave. Unknown
thieves dived down to the ship and looted it,
making off with its most precious commodity – honor.
A ship’s "data plaque" was usually a brass plate
cast or embossed with information on the ship's
significant dates and builder,” Warman’s Guide to
WWII Collectibles author John Graf told
FoxNews.com. "Usually, there would be just one
made for each ship, so each example tends to be
unique and command collector interest."
"Naturally, we're very upset because we feel that
it's ours, it's our ship," said Ed Hoffman, 85,
one of the handful of the Emmons' original crew
members – "one of the young ones," he says.
"There were six of us in the pilot house; only
two of us got out," Hoffman recalled in an interview with FoxNews.com.
“That ship is a resting place,” another survivor,
92 year-old Harold Jay, told FoxNews.com. “Those men deserve our respect.”
There are plenty of theories on who would
vandalize a naval grave. But at this point,
nobody really knows who's responsible.
“It may have been Japanese authorities,” said
military historian Martin Morgan. "Japanese have
become more interested in interacting with their
history of the Second World War, and
unfortunately Japanese historians have
participated in distortions of the political and
historical record of World War II."
And recently, anti-U.S. military presence has
become more visible. In the spring, nearly
100,000 Japanese protested the presence of U.S.
military forces on Okinawa, raising the
possibility that locals secretly dived to the sunken ship.
But Hoffman isn't buying that theory. "Chances
are it's not native divers,” he said. “They have
a great sensibility for the resting place of the dead."
Tamio Ota, a still photographer in Okinawa,
agrees. “Okinawans are sensitive to the dead. We
believe in ancestry worship here in Okinawa; we
respect the dead from both sides.” Ota said.
The U.S. Navy retains custody of its ship and
aircraft wrecks despite the passage of time and
regardless of where they are lost – whether in
U.S., foreign or international waters — but it
said there is some question as to who should or
even could investigate the theft of the Emmons plaque.
"We're a felony investigative agency," Naval
Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) spokesman
Ed Buice told FoxNews.com. News of the the Emmons
vandalism has naval authorities puzzled.
“In my years at NCIS, I’ve never heard of something like this,” Buice said.
Graf suspects souvenir hunters are responsible.
“Anything associated with WWII U.S. Navy vessels
are collectible,” he told FoxNews.com via e-mail.
"Anything associated with U.S. Navy vessels that
were in combat and sustain damage or even sunk
are very collectible and command higher prices.”
The idea of a souvenir collector stealing from
the USS Emmons site is disturbing to many — “All
military people know what a sunken ship means,”
Ota said — but the Emmons has become a
destination dive for international tourists, and
collectors know a valuable "souvenir" when they
see one. Whoever removed the ship's plaque likely
had some knowledge of its worth, said Graf.
I have my doubs it was collectors. More like scum who know they might make money selling to collectors. Most Criminals are dumb, keep a look out on ebay.
W.
The looting of the Emmons is a blow for the
ship's survivors and their families, who have
pledged to honor their loved ones' service.
Members of the USS Emmons Association, which
recently established a college scholarship to
interest young people in the ship's history, say
it will be hard to put this incident behind them.
“The USS Emmons was more than the veterans'
temporary home. It is the special connection to
their love of and contribution to America,” Jay's
daughter, Pepper Jay, told FoxNews.com.
She said the plaque "bestowed honor on their ship
and fallen shipmates. When it went missing, the
survivors felt that part of themselves had also gone missing.”
Fox News
Monday , September 27, 2010
By Matt Sanchez
The destroyer mine sweeper USS Emmons (DMS-22,
ex-DD-457) served the United States proudly
through World War II, right up until April 6,
1945, when it was attacked by a number of
kamikaze pilots off the coast of Okinawa. (Many
aircraft were splashed, but Emmons was struck by
five, almost simultaneously. One hit her fantail,
the rest to starboard of her pilot house, of No.
3 gun mount, on her waterline, aft, and the port
side of her combat information center. Crippled
and ablaze, with ammunition exploding wholesale,
Emmons found damage control a desperate, losing
struggle. That day her gallant crew, who had
already won the Navy Unit Commendation for
Okinawa, lost 60 dead, 77 wounded.) One day
later, the U.S. Navy sank the destroyer to
prevent it from falling into the hands of the Japanese.
The bodies of 60 American sailors went down with the ship.
For 65 years, the Emmons lay peacefully on the
ocean floor, guns raised skyward — until
recently, when divers discovered that the ship
had been vandalized. Its builder's plaque — the
metal plate and vessel’s "birth certificate" — had been removed.
To veterans, it's like robbing a grave. Unknown
thieves dived down to the ship and looted it,
making off with its most precious commodity – honor.
A ship’s "data plaque" was usually a brass plate
cast or embossed with information on the ship's
significant dates and builder,” Warman’s Guide to
WWII Collectibles author John Graf told
FoxNews.com. "Usually, there would be just one
made for each ship, so each example tends to be
unique and command collector interest."
"Naturally, we're very upset because we feel that
it's ours, it's our ship," said Ed Hoffman, 85,
one of the handful of the Emmons' original crew
members – "one of the young ones," he says.
"There were six of us in the pilot house; only
two of us got out," Hoffman recalled in an interview with FoxNews.com.
“That ship is a resting place,” another survivor,
92 year-old Harold Jay, told FoxNews.com. “Those men deserve our respect.”
There are plenty of theories on who would
vandalize a naval grave. But at this point,
nobody really knows who's responsible.
“It may have been Japanese authorities,” said
military historian Martin Morgan. "Japanese have
become more interested in interacting with their
history of the Second World War, and
unfortunately Japanese historians have
participated in distortions of the political and
historical record of World War II."
And recently, anti-U.S. military presence has
become more visible. In the spring, nearly
100,000 Japanese protested the presence of U.S.
military forces on Okinawa, raising the
possibility that locals secretly dived to the sunken ship.
But Hoffman isn't buying that theory. "Chances
are it's not native divers,” he said. “They have
a great sensibility for the resting place of the dead."
Tamio Ota, a still photographer in Okinawa,
agrees. “Okinawans are sensitive to the dead. We
believe in ancestry worship here in Okinawa; we
respect the dead from both sides.” Ota said.
The U.S. Navy retains custody of its ship and
aircraft wrecks despite the passage of time and
regardless of where they are lost – whether in
U.S., foreign or international waters — but it
said there is some question as to who should or
even could investigate the theft of the Emmons plaque.
"We're a felony investigative agency," Naval
Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) spokesman
Ed Buice told FoxNews.com. News of the the Emmons
vandalism has naval authorities puzzled.
“In my years at NCIS, I’ve never heard of something like this,” Buice said.
Graf suspects souvenir hunters are responsible.
“Anything associated with WWII U.S. Navy vessels
are collectible,” he told FoxNews.com via e-mail.
"Anything associated with U.S. Navy vessels that
were in combat and sustain damage or even sunk
are very collectible and command higher prices.”
The idea of a souvenir collector stealing from
the USS Emmons site is disturbing to many — “All
military people know what a sunken ship means,”
Ota said — but the Emmons has become a
destination dive for international tourists, and
collectors know a valuable "souvenir" when they
see one. Whoever removed the ship's plaque likely
had some knowledge of its worth, said Graf.
I have my doubs it was collectors. More like scum who know they might make money selling to collectors. Most Criminals are dumb, keep a look out on ebay.
W.
The looting of the Emmons is a blow for the
ship's survivors and their families, who have
pledged to honor their loved ones' service.
Members of the USS Emmons Association, which
recently established a college scholarship to
interest young people in the ship's history, say
it will be hard to put this incident behind them.
“The USS Emmons was more than the veterans'
temporary home. It is the special connection to
their love of and contribution to America,” Jay's
daughter, Pepper Jay, told FoxNews.com.
She said the plaque "bestowed honor on their ship
and fallen shipmates. When it went missing, the
survivors felt that part of themselves had also gone missing.”
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