# Is there a"burial at sea"-type ceremony for presumed-dead Navy sailors?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-burial-at-sea-type-ceremony-for-presumed-dead-navy-sailors/679706>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 25, 2014, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-burial-at-sea-type-ceremony-for-presumed-dead-navy-sailors/679706 "2014-01-25T21:48:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\
**Post date:** [January 25, 2014, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-burial-at-sea-type-ceremony-for-presumed-dead-navy-sailors/679706/1 "2014-01-25T21:48:00Z")

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At the U.S. Navy ship museum where I work there is a movie presentation that describes a Kamikaze attack that the ship suffered in World War II. Dozens of sailors were killed in the strike. The narration states that the X-number of officers and men who died were buried at sea, but in truth a few of the victims’ bodies were never found or recovered; those poor guys were blown off the ship in the explosions, or were burned beyond recognition in the resulting inferno.

(I am not writing to quibble with the strict veracity of the narration, so please let’s not go there, okay?)

Here’s my question. Would the missing-and-presumed-dead sailors have been represented or mentioned in some way during the sea burial ceremony of the other victims? If so, how? If not, why not?

Thanks all, in advance.

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**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\
**Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-burial-at-sea-type-ceremony-for-presumed-dead-navy-sailors/679706/2 "2014-01-26T06:05:25Z")

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At some point after the “excitement” cooled down, there would have been an All Hands Muster (role call for you landlubbers). So they’re going to know who’s there and who’s missing or burned beyond recognition. So at the on-board memorial service they’d probably mention the names of all their shipmates who were missing.

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**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\
**Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-burial-at-sea-type-ceremony-for-presumed-dead-navy-sailors/679706/3 "2014-01-26T15:27:50Z")

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> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#):
>
> (role call for you landlubbers)

And roll call for you nitpickers.