HONOLULU - The 429 victims of the U.S.S. Oklahoma who died 66 years ago at Pearl Harbor were memorialized Friday in a dedication ceremony in Hawaii.
The Oklahoma rolled over on Battleship Row, trapping the men during the Japanese bombing of U.S. naval ships and aircraft. The Oklahoma's death toll was the second after the U.S.S. Arizona's toll of 1,177.
The dedication is one of several events marking the 66th anniversary of the sneak attack, the Honolulu Advertiser reported. The observance began at 7:55 a.m., the time when the bombing began.
As part of Friday's memorial, the White House Commission on Remembrance began a six-month journey of the American flag with a flag-raising on the USS Arizona memorial and the Oklahoma memorial. The flag will travel to more than 20 states to honor servicemen who died.
Half a world away, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates commemorated Pearl Harbor Day at the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command headquarters in Manama, Bahrain. He was at the headquarters for a briefing on the command's security efforts to keep the region's waterways safe and open.
Flags at federal buildings across the United States were flown at half-staff.
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