U.S Navy Identifies Wreck Of WWII Submarine USS Herring, Lost With 83 Sailors In 1944
The U.S Navy has identified the wreck site of World War II submarine USS Herring, which was lost with 83 sailors after it was hit by Japanese shore batteries off Matsuwa Island on June 1, 1944.
The wreck is protected under U.S. law as a sunken military craft and will be treated as a war grave.
Naval History and Heritage Command announced that the wreck of the Gato-class submarine had been identified after many years of review, with the help of data collected by the Russian Geographic Society, two American researchers and a Japanese researcher.
The final resting place has been confirmed 82 years after Herring sank during its 8th war patrol in the Kuril Islands, spanning between Japan and Russia.
“Herring’s discovery is a powerful reminder that we have an obligation to the sailors and Marines who gave their lives in service to our nation,” Samuel J. Cox, director of Naval History and Heritage Command, said.
The wreck lies upright in over 300 feet of water, and images show damage around its conning tower.
Launched Jan. 15, 1942, at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, and commissioned on May 4, 1942, the sub completed 8 war patrols in the Atlantic and Pacific.
It sank 7 enemy ships during active service and was a part of several important missions.
The submarine left for its last patrol on May 21, 1944, from Midway for the Kuril Islands under the command of Cmdr. David Zabriskie Jr.
The next day, it targeted Japanese ships near Matsuwa Island and sank two Ishigaki Maru and Hokuyo Maru. After this, Japanese shore batteries opened fire and struck the submarine near its conning tower.
For decades, its wreck could not be found, though Japanese sources helped ascertain the likely location. Japanese records stated that Herring sank on June 1, 1944, about 2 km south of Point Tagan on Matsuwa Island.
Herring was one of the 52 U.S. submarines lost during World War II, according to the U.S. Navy.
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