Cavalier Sailor Returns Home From Pearl Harbor

Floyd Wells was only 24 when he died in the WWII attack in Hawaii

FARGO, N.D. — A Cavalier man who died in the World War II attack on Pearl Harbor is finally coming home.

Of all the moments she had with her uncle, Darlene Erichsen says there’s one she can still remember perfectly.

“He gave me a piggyback from the depot down to the mailbox and of course our house wasn’t far from there,” Erichsen said.

Erichsen was seven–years–old at the time, but it’s also the only memory that anyone in her family has of Floyd.

He was only 24 when he died on the USS Arizona that was bombed during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

“Although we knew that he had been killed in Pearl Harbor, he was unidentified and it’s like a missing link in the family,” Wells said.

That void is now being filled, after Erichsen got a call from the Navy over the summer.

“They came to my home in Arlington, Washington. Two of them and told me about the positive identification of my uncle. My first thought was to bring him home where he was born,” Erichsen said.

Floyd’s sister Phillis and two of her kids sent in some of their DNA to the Navy back in 2017 to help in identifying him.

But Phillis passed away that same year.

It’s now all of Floyd’s nieces and nephews who say they can’t wait to finally see his remains return to his home state with a proper military escort.

“That’s something he really deserves. I’m a little anxious but looking forward to that. I mean he’s finally getting his due,” Wells said.

But Curtis says it’s sad to think Floyd’s parents, three brothers and sister never will get the news.

“That’s probably the biggest disappointment,” Wells said.

Because now his long awaited return is finally providing the rest of his family some ease.

“I feel peace that he is home,” Erichsen said.

“It’s the final chapter of a war hero,” Wells said.

Curtis says many of his family members live out of state but not a single one hesitated about making the trip to North Dakota.