April 21, 200917 yr Memorial to remember battleship Iowa explosion The Associated Press Posted : Sunday Apr 19, 2009 14:28:27 EDT NORFOLK, Va. — Hundreds are expected at Naval Station Norfolk to mark the 20th anniversary of the explosion onboard the battleship Iowa that killed 47 crewmen. Sunday, people whose lives were touched by that deadly day will remember the men who died more than 300 miles northeast of Puerto Rico. The names of the dead will be read aloud. At first, Navy investigators accused a crewman of causing the accident because he was depressed over a relationship with another crewman. He was later cleared and the cause was blamed on a combination of inexperience and problems with the powder. Survivors say there are still members of the Iowa crew suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder because of the tragedy. Find NavyTimes article here.
Create an account or sign in to comment