Dead US soldier at Pearl Harbor identified 80 years later

(ANSA) – NEW YORK, 01 APR – Almost 83 years later, a name and a face have been given to the remains of an American soldier who died during the attack on Pearl Harbor (Hawaii). David Walker, 19 years old, originally from Norfolk, Virginia, was identified thanks to DNA analysis. CNN reports it. Walker was serving on the battleship ‘USS California’, docked at Pearl Harbor at dawn on December 7, 1941 when the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the American naval base. The ship was hit by several bombs and torpedoes, caught fire and sank. The 103 soldiers on board, including Walker, all died. The remains of the recovered soldiers were buried in several cemeteries in Hawaii. The body of the young soldier was exhumed in 2018 together with 24 others buried as ‘unknown’. An advanced DNA test allowed his identification. Walker was a high school student in Virginia when he decided to drop out the year before he died to join the military. Next September his remains will be buried in the Arlington National Cemetery, the monumental military cemetery just outside Washington DC (ANSA).