![]() “Despite the surprise, shock and loss of so many of their shipmates, the surviving crewmen of Abner Read displayed extraordinary valor and determination in saving their ship. “This was catastrophic damage that by all rights should have sunk the entire ship,” said Naval History and Heritage Command Director Rear Adm. The blast severed the ship’s stern section and ultimately cost the lives of 71 Sailors and wounded another 47. 18, 1943, while patrolling off Kiska Island, Alaska, the ship is believed to have struck a mine. She said the loss of Abner Read stayed with him the rest of his life.Īlthough the ship was lost in 1944, Leyte Gulf was not Abner Read’s first deadly encounter with the enemy. Downing spoke eloquently about the service of her grandfather Gilbert "Jack" Coffeen, a member of Abner Read’s crew. ![]() Mary Elizabeth Downing of Hays, Kan., escorted her grandmother, Irene Coffeen, of Russell Kan., to the ceremony.
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