FORD, EDWARD

Name: Edward Ford
Rank/Branch: E5/US Army
Unit: Company B, 65th Engineer Battalion, 25th Infantry Division
Date of Birth: 05 November 1941
Home City of Record: Birmingham AL
Date of Loss: 09 December 1968
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 110456N 1062010E
Status (in 1973): Killed/Body Not Recovered
Category: 4
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: Ground
Refno: 1337
Other Personnel In Incident: None missing

Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 2020.

REMARKS:

SYNOPSIS:  On December 9, 1968, SP5 Edward Ford and PFC Leo S. Goralski were
serving on a mine sweeping team in Hau Nghia Province, South Vietnam.  These
two men were operating a mine detector with the other engineers, and the
unit they were supporting was following behind.  It is believed that the two
men were standing atop a 100-150 pound enemy mine when it exploded.

A search was made of the area, but no identifiable remains were found.  The
following day, another engineer team found identifiable remains for
Goralski. Inquiries of the provincial representative and local residents
produced no leads or new information.  JCRC was denied access to the site
for further examination.

Apparently, the case of Edward Ford is clear.  He is listed among the dead
because unless he had abandoned his position, he disappeared when the large
mine exploded beneath him.  His is also listed with honor among the missing
because his remains were not recovered.

The cases of all the missing are not so clear.  Many were known to have been
alive and well at the time they went missing.  Some were photographed or
otherwise identified as prisoners of war.  Nearly 2500 Americans are
missing, and experts now believe hundreds of them are still alive, captives
of a long-ago enemy.
 

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01/2020

https://dpaa.secure.force.com/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt00000001UT8EAM

SP5 EDWARD FORD

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On December 9, 1968, two soldiers were serving on a mine clearing team in South Vietnam. The two men were operating a mine detector with other engineers, with the unit they were supporting following behind. The two men were likely standing atop a large enemy mine when it exploded. A search was made of the area but no identifiable remains were found. The following day another team recovered identifiable remains belonging to one of the two missing men. The other man remains unaccounted for.

Specialist 5 Edward Ford entered the U.S. Army from Alabama and was a member of Company B, 65th Engineer Combat Battalion, 25th Infantry Division. He was one of the two men killed when this mine exploded and his remains were not recovered. Today, Specialist 5 Ford is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual's case to be in the analytical category of Non-recoverable.

If you are a family member of this serviceman, DPAA can provide you with additional information and analysis of your case. Please contact your casualty office representative.

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