Bertain, Robert Eugene
Navy Petty officer 1st class

Robert Eugene Bertain, age 26, from Eureka, California, Humboldt county.

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Tuesday, June 12, 1951
Death details: On June 12, 1951, the destroyer USS Walke (DD-723) was providing anti-submarine protection to carriers from Task Force 77 off the east coast of Wonsan, North Korea, when it was struck on the port side by an enemy mine or torpedo. The force of the explosion tossed many sailors into the water, and those who were injured had a difficult time staying afloat while they waited for rescue. Twenty-six sailors were killed in the explosion and forty were wounded. Although the ship’s hull was heavily damaged, after the incident the Walke was able to proceed under its own power to Sasebo, Japan, for repairs. Of the men killed in the incident, the remains of eight could not be recovered. During repairs, the remains of seven sailors were recovered from flooded parts of the ship and identified. However, two of those men later became unaccounted-for due to unknown circumstances, so the total number of unaccounted-for sailors from the Walke now stands at ten. Radarman First Class Robert Eugene Bertain, who joined the U.S. Navy from California, served aboard the Walke and was killed in the explosion on June 12. His body could not be recovered. Today, Radarman First Class Bertain 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.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Napa Journal (1951)