Last night, the Marine Corps announced that they were suspending their search for the 12 Marines whose helicopters went down off the coast of Hawaii and transition to a “recovery and salvage” mission.
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The search began late Thursday night when a beachgoer saw two helicopters flying and then a massive fireball.
The two CH-53E, some of the largest transport helicopters in the military were flying a training mission out of their base at Kaneohe Bay. When they failed to return, the Coast Guard was sent out.
A Coast Guard helicopter and C-130 airplane spotted some of the wreck’s debris 2.5 miles off of the coast of Oahu. Initial reports claim the choppers collided, but the Marines have backed off that claim.
The names of these brave men are:
— Maj. Shawn M. Campbell, 41, College Station, Texas.
— Capt. Brian T. Kennedy, 31, Philadelphia.
— Capt. Kevin T. Roche, 30, St. Louis.
— Capt. Steven R. Torbert, 29, Florence, Alabama.
— Sgt. Dillon J. Semolina, 24, Chaska, Minnesota.
— Sgt. Adam C. Schoeller, 25, Gardners, Pennsylvania.
— Sgt. Jeffrey A. Sempler, 22, Woodruff, South Carolina.
— Sgt. William J. Turner, 25, Florala, Alabama.
— Cpl. Matthew R. Drown, 23, Spring, Texas.
— Cpl. Thomas J. Jardas, 22, Fort Myers, Florida.
— Cpl. Christopher J. Orlando, 23, Hingham, Massachusetts.
— Lance Cpl. Ty L. Hart, 21, Aumsville, Oregon.
Pray for their families.
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From ABC:
A massive search for 12 Marines who were aboard two helicopters that crashed off Hawaii has been suspended, after the five-day effort failed to locate any sign of them.
Officials said at news conference late Tuesday afternoon that the search was being suspended at sundown and the Marine Corps would transition to “recovery and salvage” efforts. A memorial is tentatively planned for Friday at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe Bay.
“The decision to suspend the search without finding survivors is particularly difficult,” said Capt. James Jenkins, chief of staff and acting commander of the Coast Guard 14th District in Honolulu.
Is the Marine Corps Suspending the search too early? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
