Nov. 9—GRAND FORKS — A North Dakota sailor who was killed during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, was laid to rest during an interment ceremony Oct. 25 at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Fireman 1st Class Edward Dale Johnson, from New Rockford, North Dakota, was the only service member honored in the ceremony. His niece, Arlene Camp of Vermillion, South Dakota, attended. (The family has declined to speak to the news media, according to the Department of Defense.)
Johnson served aboard the USS Oklahoma, the battleship on which he died in the Japanese attack. He was among 429 Oklahoma crew members who lost their lives that day.
During the “Honor the Fallen” ceremony, Defense POW/MIA (Prisoners of War/Missing in Action) Accounting Agency and other attendees paid their respects and honored the life of Johnson, who was among 2,341 military service members killed during the early Sunday morning attack by Japanese aircraft at Pearl Harbor.
On that fateful day, the USS Oklahoma was among the first ships to be struck, according to the Navy Personnel Command Public Affairs Office. It sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize.
That day, the USS Oklahoma was supposed to be out to sea patrolling near the Hawaiian Islands, but, along with the other eight battleships at Pearl Harbor, the Oklahoma crew was advised there was to be an admiral’s inspection Monday.
When the attack began just before 8 a.m., many of the crew members were sleeping in their racks below decks and never made it to the main deck. Struck by torpedoes, the Oklahoma’s port side was torn open and within 15 minutes of the first torpedo strike, she rolled over completely, trapping crew members within her hull.
Men trapped inside started banging on the bulkhead trying to get the attention of passing small boats. After cutting holes in the exposed bottom of the ship, 32 men were pulled out alive. Banging continued through Dec. 10, but nothing could be done. The sound was coming from below the water line and the helpless sailors standing watch over the Oklahoma could only wait and listen until the banging stopped.
When the ship was righted in 1944, the remains of 429 sailors were recovered. Of these, only 35 were able to be identified. The remains of 388 unidentified sailors and Marines were first interred as “unknowns” in two cemeteries. All were disinterred in 1947, in an unsuccessful attempt to identify more personnel.
In 1950, all unidentified remains from the battleship Oklahoma were buried in 61 caskets in 45 graves at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as the “Punchbowl.”
In April 2015, the Department of Defense announced that the unidentified remains of the crew members of the Oklahoma would be exhumed for DNA analysis, with the goal of returning identified remains to their families.
Before the 2015 USS Oklahoma disinterment, which marked the beginning of Project Oklahoma, 388 service members were unaccounted for. Since then, 356 have been individually identified. Johnson was accounted for on Sept. 29, 2020.
Advanced DNA testing has made it possible for the federal government to identify the remains of service members. The DNA profiling process begins with a sample — referred to as “reference samples” — from a surviving family member.
During Project Oklahoma, the Navy’s POW/MIA Office reached out to identified family members, by letter or phone call, to request their participation in the Family Reference Sample Program. Family members can also call the Navy’s POW/MIA Office and request to participate as well. These efforts result in positive matches and identifications of loved ones lost on the USS Oklahoma.
Scientists with the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, and Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha, Nebraska, are responsible for identifying unaccounted-for, past-conflict service members. Identifications are primarily made by matching the DNA reference samples from surviving family members with those unaccounted for from the USS Oklahoma. Other supporting documents, such as medical and dental records, are also used during the research and identification processes.
Although it has been more than 80 years since the attack on Pearl Harbor, it is still important to identify the remains of fallen heroes, according to a statement from the Navy.
“When briefing families, we often hear things like, ‘My family did not believe he was dead’ or ‘He probably was not on board the ship’ or ‘Maybe one day he would walk through the door,’ ” the statement reads. “Being able to recover and identify the remains of these sailors aids in the closure to these families. Like forces in the Department of Defense, it is especially important to the Navy to honor our sailors and Marines who paid the ultimate sacrifice in giving their lives for our country.
“Often the notification and identification briefing can be emotional, overwhelming and relieving for the families. Most families we speak with cannot believe their loved one has actually been recovered and/or identified after so many years.”
For his military service, Johnson received numerous awards and decorations, including the Purple Heart Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Good Conduct Medal, American Defense Service Medal (Fleet Clasp), Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal (with Bronze Star), American Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal and Rifle Marksman. This list of awards may be incomplete, according to the Navy Personnel Command Public Affairs Office, because many Pearl Harbor records were lost as a result of the attack.
Johnson, who was born Oct. 26, 1917, in Hurdsfield, North Dakota, enlisted in the Navy on Dec. 12, 1939, in Portland, Oregon, according to information provided by the Navy Personnel Command Public Affairs Office in Millington, Tennessee.
Upon enlistment, he was assigned to the Naval Training Station in San Diego, California, on Dec. 14, 1939. He was assigned to the USS Oklahoma on Feb. 24, 1940.
Johnson served initially as a seaman apprentice and rose through the ranks, ultimately being promoted to Fireman 1st Class on May 1, 1941, according to the public affairs office.
This rating “is not just about fighting fires,” according to the office. “Part of the job functions include rescue, but the career path is also geared toward engineering. Fireman stand engineering watches, as well as power plant and ship security watches both in port and while underway, and are responsible for performing minor maintenance repairs. While performing watches they ensure all safety standards are being met with any associated engineering machinery.
“Firemen also assist with underway replenishment including transferring fuel and supplies.”
Fireman 1st Class Edward Dale Johnson, the young sailor from New Rockford who made the ultimate sacrifice for his country, now rests in peace in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Hawaii, where his life ended at age 24.
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