Remembering on Memorial Day

USS Muskeget (formerly USS YAG-9)

On September 9, 1942, the US Coastguard Cutter Muskeget was torpedoed by a German U-boat killing all on board.  At the time, the Muskeget was collecting weather observations in the North Atlantic.  Included in the crew were four civilian National Weather Service Meteorologists: Lester S. Fordor of Cleveland, Ohio; George F. Kubach of Sandusky, Ohio; Edward Weber of New York, New York, and Luther H. Brady of Atlanta, Georgia. 

In 2015, 70 years after the end of World War II, these four meteorologists were awarded the Purple Heart.  It was the first time that National Weather Service personnel were awarded this award. 

Today we remember these four meteorologists and all who died while serving the United States, including more than 400,000 members of the Greatest Generation who made the ultimate sacrifice during World War II.