Forensic Science & History: Echoes of Pearl Harbor: How DNA Is Finally Naming the Fallen

Echoes of Pearl Harbor: How DNA Is Finally Naming the Fallen

The tranquil, blue waters of Pearl Harbor hold a deep and somber history. On December 7, 1941, a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service plunged the United States into World War II and left an indelible scar on the nation's psyche. The attack resulted in the deaths of 2,403 Americans, both service members and civilians. In the chaotic aftermath, amidst the burning ships and ravaged naval base, began a daunting task that would span decades: the identification of the fallen. For countless families, the agonizing wait for answers would stretch across generations. But today, through the remarkable advancements in forensic science, the echoes of that infamous day are being answered, and names are finally being restored to the "unknowns" of Pearl Harbor.

The Day of Infamy and the Grim Aftermath

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a swift and devastating blow. In less than two hours, the U.S. Pacific Fleet was crippled, with multiple battleships sunk or severely damaged. The USS Arizona was obliterated by a catastrophic explosion, taking with it 1,177 of its crew. The USS Oklahoma, struck by multiple torpedoes, capsized, trapping hundreds of men inside. The USS West Virginia and USS California also suffered heavy losses. In total, the attack claimed the lives of 2,390 American service members and civilians.

In the immediate aftermath, a grim and chaotic scene unfolded. Recovery efforts began almost at once, with brave sailors and civilians risking their lives to rescue survivors and retrieve the dead from the fiery, oil-slicked waters. Navy diver Ken Hartle was one of those tasked with the harrowing job of recovering bodies from the sunken vessels. His children would later recall that he rarely spoke of this traumatic duty, only saying that the hardest part was "bringing up our boys."

The sheer scale of the casualties and the destructive force of the attack overwhelmed the military's resources. Many of the recovered remains were severely burned or fragmented, making visual identification impossible. The Army's Graves Registration Service (GRS), the entity responsible for the care of the dead, was only mobilized during wartime and had no standing units available at Pearl Harbor. In the absence of established protocols for such a mass casualty event on American soil, the initial identification efforts were fraught with challenges. Chaplains and any available personnel did their best to record information and perform burials.

In the years that followed the attack, the GRS, which was formally established in August 1917, undertook the monumental task of identifying the remains of American service members from all theaters of World War II. In September 1947, the remains of hundreds of Pearl Harbor casualties were disinterred from temporary cemeteries like Halawa and Nu'uanu and transferred to the Central Identification Laboratory at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii. Using the forensic techniques of the time, primarily dental records, the laboratory staff was able to identify some of the men. However, for hundreds of others, identification proved impossible. These service members were buried as "Unknowns" in 46 plots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. For decades, their headstones bore only the stark inscription: UNKNOWN.

The Dawn of a New Era in Forensic Science

For nearly 70 years, the identities of many of the Pearl Harbor fallen seemed lost to history. The limitations of mid-20th-century forensic science meant that families were left with a painful uncertainty. But the dawn of the DNA era would change everything. The discovery of DNA analysis in the 1980s by Sir Alec Jefferys revolutionized forensic science, offering a powerful new tool for identification. This technology, which has become increasingly sophisticated over the years, held the key to finally giving names to the unknowns of Pearl Harbor.

The primary method used in the identification of these historical remains is mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis. Unlike nuclear DNA, which is inherited from both parents, mtDNA is passed down exclusively from mother to child. This maternal lineage makes it an invaluable tool for linking remains to living relatives, even those separated by several generations. Furthermore, mtDNA is far more abundant in cells than nuclear DNA, with thousands of copies in each cell, increasing the chances of obtaining a viable sample from old or degraded bone fragments.

The process of mtDNA analysis begins with the careful extraction of DNA from the remains. Scientists then amplify and sequence specific hypervariable regions (HVR-I and HVR-II) of the mtDNA, which exhibit high levels of variation among individuals. This sequence is then compared to reference samples provided by the families of the missing service members. A match can provide a strong link to a maternal relative.

In recent years, the technology has advanced even further. Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) has become a game-changer, allowing for the rapid sequencing of entire genomes or targeted regions of DNA. This massively parallel sequencing technology provides a much higher resolution of data and can be used to analyze even the most degraded samples. For the Pearl Harbor project, NGS has been instrumental in overcoming the challenges posed by the age and condition of the remains.

In addition to mtDNA, scientists can also use Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis, which is passed down from father to son, to establish paternal lineage. Autosomal DNA (auSTR), which is inherited from both parents, can also be used for identification. The combination of these DNA techniques, along with traditional anthropological and dental analysis, creates a powerful multi-disciplinary approach to identification.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA)

At the heart of the effort to identify the Pearl Harbor fallen is the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). The DPAA's mission is to provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing personnel to their families and the nation. The agency was formed in 2015 from the merger of several other organizations, including the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) and the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office, and has its roots in efforts that began after the Vietnam War.

The DPAA employs a large team of historians, forensic anthropologists, archaeologists, and other specialists who work to identify the remains of missing service members from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and other conflicts. The agency operates the largest forensic anthropology laboratory in the world, with facilities in Hawaii and Nebraska.

The DPAA's work begins long before any remains are exhumed. Historians and analysts meticulously comb through historical records, creating a case file for each missing service member. These files include service records, medical and dental records, and any information about the circumstances of their loss. Genealogists then work to trace the family lines of the missing, searching for living relatives who can provide DNA reference samples.

Once a project is approved, such as the disinterment of the Pearl Harbor unknowns, the painstaking work of analysis begins. Forensic anthropologists examine the skeletal remains to create a biological profile, including the individual's age, sex, stature, and ancestry. They also look for any signs of trauma or unique skeletal features that could aid in identification. Forensic odontologists, or dental specialists, compare the dental remains to antemortem records, which can often provide a positive identification.

The DNA analysis is conducted by the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL), a division of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System. The results of the DNA analysis, combined with the anthropological and dental evidence, are then used to make an identification. The DPAA has a rigorous review process, and an identification is only made when all lines of evidence are in agreement.

The USS Oklahoma Project: A Monumental Undertaking

The story of the identification of the Pearl Harbor fallen is in many ways the story of the USS Oklahoma. The battleship suffered the second-highest number of casualties in the attack, with 429 sailors and Marines killed. In the years after the war, only 35 of the Oklahoma's dead were identified. The remaining 394 were buried as unknowns in the Punchbowl cemetery.

For decades, the families of the Oklahoma's lost crew lived with a painful void. But the tireless efforts of a Pearl Harbor survivor would set in motion a chain of events that would lead to the identification of hundreds of these men. Ray Emory, who served on the USS Honolulu during the attack, spent years researching the Oklahoma casualties, convinced that modern science could identify the unknowns. In 2003, armed with his research, Emory persuaded the military to exhume a single casket from the Punchbowl that was believed to contain the remains of five Oklahoma sailors.

The results of this initial exhumation were staggering. Instead of five individuals, the casket contained the commingled remains of nearly 100 men. This discovery revealed the immense challenge that lay ahead, but it also demonstrated the potential of DNA analysis. Between 2008 and 2010, six sailors from the Oklahoma were identified from this initial disinterment and another casket associated with a single Pearl Harbor loss.

The success of these initial identifications, though limited, provided the impetus for a much larger project. In 2015, the Deputy Secretary of Defense authorized the disinterment of all the remaining USS Oklahoma unknowns from the Punchbowl. This marked the official start of the USS Oklahoma Project, a massive undertaking by the DPAA to identify as many of the 388 remaining unaccounted-for service members as possible.

The project was a monumental challenge. The remains were highly commingled, meaning the bones of multiple individuals were mixed together in the caskets. Over 13,000 bones had to be sorted and analyzed. More than 5,000 DNA samples were taken and sent to AFDIL for analysis. The process was painstaking, requiring a combination of anthropological analysis, dental comparisons, and multiple types of DNA testing.

Despite the challenges, the USS Oklahoma Project has been a resounding success. As of the project's conclusion in 2021, the DPAA had identified 361 of the 394 unknown service members from the ship, a success rate of over 90 percent. The 33 individuals who could not be identified were reinterred in a solemn ceremony at the Punchbowl on the 80th anniversary of the attack.

Voices from the Past: The Stories of the Identified

Behind every identification is a story of a life cut short and a family left to grieve. The work of the DPAA has brought closure to hundreds of families, finally allowing them to bring their loved ones home for a proper burial.

Among the identified were the Trapp brothers, Harold and William. The two Navy sailors were aboard the USS Oklahoma when it capsized. For 80 years, their family wondered about their fate. Were they at the bottom of Pearl Harbor, or in an anonymous grave? Thanks to the USS Oklahoma Project, their remains were identified, and in June 2021, they were buried with full military honors at the Punchbowl. Their niece, Carol Sowar, who was born after the attack, said the identification was a miracle that brought a sense of peace to her family.

Twin brothers Leo and Rudolph Blitz also perished on the USS Oklahoma. They had enlisted in the Navy together in 1938 at the age of 16. For 78 years, their family held out hope for their return. In 2019, their remains were identified through a combination of dental records and DNA analysis. A DNA sample from a family member provided the crucial link, and dental records for Leo matched a skull found among the remains.

The family of Herbert Jackson, a sailor killed on the USS Oklahoma, also received the news they had long awaited. His nephew recalled how his grandmother, Herbert's mother, never gave up hope that her son might still be alive because his body had never been identified. The family attended meetings with the Navy and provided DNA samples. In 2019, they received the call that Herbert had been identified. His nephew expressed his wish that his mother and grandmother could have been there to receive the news.

Beyond the Oklahoma: The Ongoing Mission

The success of the USS Oklahoma Project has served as a model for the identification of other Pearl Harbor unknowns. The DPAA has also been working to identify the remains of service members from the USS West Virginia and the USS California.

The USS West Virginia lost 106 crewmen in the attack. Thirty-five sets of remains were recovered but could not be identified and were buried as unknowns. In 2017, these remains were disinterred for analysis. As of June 2022, 13 of the USS West Virginia unknowns have been identified and returned to their families. Among them was Electrician's Mate 3rd Class Charles Brown, who was 22 years old when he died. His remains were identified in March 2021 and he was buried with full military honors. The work to identify the remaining West Virginia unknowns is ongoing.

The USS California lost 104 crewmen in the attack. Twenty-five sets of remains were buried as unknowns. These remains were exhumed in 2018 for analysis as part of the DPAA's Pearl Harbor Project. Since then, a number of sailors from the USS California have been identified, including Fireman 1st Class Edward D. Bowden and Seaman 2nd Class Stanley C. Galaszewski. In March 2024, it was announced that the remains of Mess Attendant 3rd Class David Walker had been identified through a combination of anthropological, dental, and DNA analysis.

Operation 85: A Civilian-Led Effort for the USS Arizona

While the DPAA has been focused on the unknowns from the Oklahoma, West Virginia, and California, a new effort has emerged to identify the fallen from the ship that suffered the greatest loss of life at Pearl Harbor: the USS Arizona. While the majority of the 1,177 men who died on the Arizona remain entombed in the sunken battleship, the remains of at least 85 crew members were recovered but never identified. They are buried as unknowns in the Punchbowl.

For years, many families of the Arizona's lost crew believed that all of their loved ones were in the ship. The revelation that some were buried as unknowns has spurred a new mission. This effort is being led not by the government, but by a dedicated civilian. Kevin Kline, the great-nephew of Robert Kline, a sailor who died on the Arizona, founded USS Arizona Operation 85. The goal of the project is to collect DNA samples from the relatives of the Arizona's missing and to work with the military to identify the 85 unknowns.

Kline was inspired to start the project after visiting the USS Arizona Memorial and learning that some of the crew were buried elsewhere. He was frustrated by the DPAA's reluctance to take on the Arizona identifications, citing the difficulty and cost of obtaining DNA from the families of all 1,177 victims. Undeterred, Kline has taken on the task himself, funding the project and working with volunteers to track down family members. As of late 2023, they had made significant progress, reaching the halfway point of the Department of Defense's requirement of having 60% DNA representation of the missing crew before an identification project can begin. Operation 85 is a powerful testament to the enduring desire of families to know the fate of their loved ones and to ensure that their sacrifice is never forgotten.

A Promise Kept, A Legacy Honored

The story of the identification of the Pearl Harbor fallen is a story of science, perseverance, and a nation's commitment to honoring its heroes. For decades, the families of these men lived with the pain of not knowing. Now, thanks to the tireless work of the DPAA and the power of DNA, those families are finally receiving the answers they have so long sought.

The identification of each service member is more than just a scientific achievement; it is the fulfillment of a sacred promise to leave no one behind. It is a chance for families to finally bring their loved ones home, to give them a proper burial, and to share their stories with a new generation.

The echoes of Pearl Harbor will never completely fade, but with each name that is restored to an "unknown" hero, a measure of peace is brought to the families and a new chapter is written in the story of that fateful day. The work is not yet finished, but the commitment to honoring the fallen remains as strong as ever. As science continues to advance, there is hope that one day, all of the unknowns of Pearl Harbor will be known.