Pearl Harbor dead remembered on 71st anniversary

In this U.S. Navy file photo, a small boat rescues a USS West Virginia crew member from the water after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on Dec. 7, 1941 during World War II. Two men can be seen on the superstructure, upper center. The mast of the USS Tennessee is beyond the burning West Virginia. On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese Imperial Navy navigator Takeshi Maeda guided his Kate bomber to Pearl Harbor and fired a torpedo that helped sink the USS West Virginia. President Barack Obama on Thursday Dec. 6, 2012 issued a proclamation declaring Dec. 7 a day of remembrance in honor of the 2,400 Americans who died at Pearl Harbor. He urged federal agencies, organizations and others to fly their flags at half-staff. (AP Photo, File)
This Japanese navy air view of smoking U.S. ships during Pearl Harbor attack appeared in a 1942 publication called "The New Order in Greater East Asia," a copy of which has just become available, Oct. 14, 1945 in New York. (AP Photo)
A Japanese bomber on a run over Pearl Harbor, Hawaii is shown during the surprise attack of Dec. 7, 1941. Black smoke rises from American ships in the harbor. Below is a U.S. Army air field. (AP Photo)
This is an undated photograph of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, who was the commander of Japan's Combined Fleet and planned the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II. He was gunned down by the U.S. Army Air Force while inspecting the Northern Solomon Islands on April 18, 1943. Yamamoto was born in Japan in 1884 and studied at Harvard University in the U.S. (AP Photo)
Admiral Husband E. Kimmel was accused by a special commission of dereliction of duty over the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Jan. 24, 1942. (AP Photo)
Japanese planes over Hawaii during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941, are shown in this scene from a Japanese newsreel. The film was obtained by the U.S. War Department and released to U.S. newsreels. (AP Photo/U.S. War Department)
In this Dec. 7, 1941 file photo, the destroyer USS Shaw explodes after being hit by bombs during the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Wednesday marks the 70th anniversary of the attack that brought the United States into World War II. (AP File Photo)
The battleship USS Arizona belches smoke as it topples over into the sea during Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, December 7, 1941. The ship sank with more than 80 percent of its 1,500-man crew, including Rear Admiral Issac C. Kidd. The attack, which left 2,343 Americans dead and 916 missing, broke the backbone of the U.S. Pacific Fleet and forced America out of a policy of isolationism. President Franklin D. Roosvelt announced that it was "a date which will live in infamy" and Congress declared war on Japan the morning after. This was the first attack on American territory since 1812. (AP Photo)
A Japanese dive bomber goes into its last dive as it heads toward the ground in flames after it was hit by Naval anti-aircraft fire during surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941. (AP Photo)
Sailors stand among wrecked airplanes at Ford Island Naval Air Station as they watch the explosion of the USS Shaw in the background, during the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. (AP Photo)
In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, U.S.S. Nevada beached at Hospital Point at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in December 1941. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy)
In this image provided by the U.S. Naval Historical Center, USS Downes (DD-375) in dry dock No. 1, Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, Hawaii in December 1941, where she was struck by enemy bombs during the Japanese raid on Dec. 7, 1941. (AP Photo/U.S. Naval Historical Center)
President Franklin D. Roosevelt, appearing before a joint session of Congress termed as unprovoked and dastardly the attack by Japan upon Hawaii and the Philippines and asked for an immediate declaration of war, Dec. 8, 1941. (AP Photo)
Members of the Hearns Volunteer National Defense Corps spell the slogan "Remember Pearl Harbor" at a rally held on 14th St. between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in New York City, Dec. 27, 1941. (AP Photo)

By Audrey McAvoy - Associated Press - Friday, December 7, 2012

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii — More than 2,000 people at Pearl Harbor and many more around the country are marking the 71st anniversary of the Japanese attack that killed thousands of people and launched the United States into World War II.

The USS Michael Murphy sounded its ship’s whistle Friday to start a moment of silence at 7:55 a.m., marking the exact time the bombing began in 1941.

Crew members lined the edge of the Navy guided-missile destroyer as it passed the USS Arizona, a battleship that still lies in the harbor where it sank. Hawaii Air National Guard F-22 fighter jets flew overhead in a special formation to break the silence.

Online, Pearl Harbor became a popular topic on Facebook and other social networks, trending worldwide on Twitter and Google Plus.

The Navy and National Park Service hosted the ceremonies held in remembrance of the 2,390 service members and 49 civilians killed in the attack.

Friday events also will give special recognition to members of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, who flew noncombat missions during World War II, and to Ray Emory, a 91-year-old Pearl Harbor survivor who has pushed to identify the remains of unknown servicemen.

Admiral Cecil Haney, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, is scheduled to give the keynote address. The ceremony will also include a Hawaiian blessing, songs played by the U.S. Pacific Fleet band and a rifle salute from the U.S. Marine Corps.

President Barack Obama marked the day on Thursday by issuing a presidential proclamation, calling for flags to fly at half-staff on Friday and asking all Americans to observe the day of remembrance and honor military service members and veterans.

“Today, we pay solemn tribute to America’s sons and daughters who made the ultimate sacrifice at Oahu,” Obama said in a statement. “As we do, let us also reaffirm that their legacy will always burn bright — whether in the memory of those who knew them, the spirit of service that guides our men and women in uniform today, or the heart of the country they kept strong and free.”

The Navy and park service will resume taking visitors to the USS Arizona Memorial, which sits atop the sunken battleship, after the ceremony.

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Pearl Harbor dead remembered on 71st anniversary

This Japanese navy air view of smoking U.S. ships during Pearl Harbor attack appeared in a 1942 publication called "The New Order in Greater East Asia," a copy of which has just become available, Oct. 14, 1945 in New York. (AP Photo)

A Japanese bomber on a run over Pearl Harbor, Hawaii is shown during the surprise attack of Dec. 7, 1941. Black smoke rises from American ships in the harbor. Below is a U.S. Army air field. (AP Photo)

Admiral Husband E. Kimmel was accused by a special commission of dereliction of duty over the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Jan. 24, 1942. (AP Photo)

Japanese planes over Hawaii during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941, are shown in this scene from a Japanese newsreel. The film was obtained by the U.S. War Department and released to U.S. newsreels. (AP Photo/U.S. War Department)

In this Dec. 7, 1941 file photo, the destroyer USS Shaw explodes after being hit by bombs during the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Wednesday marks the 70th anniversary of the attack that brought the United States into World War II. (AP File Photo)

A Japanese dive bomber goes into its last dive as it heads toward the ground in flames after it was hit by Naval anti-aircraft fire during surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941. (AP Photo)

Sailors stand among wrecked airplanes at Ford Island Naval Air Station as they watch the explosion of the USS Shaw in the background, during the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. (AP Photo)

In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, U.S.S. Nevada beached at Hospital Point at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in December 1941. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy)

In this image provided by the U.S. Naval Historical Center, USS Downes (DD-375) in dry dock No. 1, Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, Hawaii in December 1941, where she was struck by enemy bombs during the Japanese raid on Dec. 7, 1941. (AP Photo/U.S. Naval Historical Center)

President Franklin D. Roosevelt, appearing before a joint session of Congress termed as unprovoked and dastardly the attack by Japan upon Hawaii and the Philippines and asked for an immediate declaration of war, Dec. 8, 1941. (AP Photo)

Members of the Hearns Volunteer National Defense Corps spell the slogan "Remember Pearl Harbor" at a rally held on 14th St. between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in New York City, Dec. 27, 1941. (AP Photo)

Please read our comment policy before commenting.

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