CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Exactly 80 years ago, a Type 91 Japanese Navy torpedo dropped from a bomber exploding the side of the USS Lexington.
That attack ripped and flooded several parts of the ship and took the lives of nine men.
Those men were honored and remembered Monday in a special ceremony on board the Lexington.
Part of the ceremony invited Lex volunteers to research and learn more about the brave sailors who lost their lives in the attack.
"On this day, remember the nine men who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country,” said one volunteer. “They served their country valiantly, and played the ultimate price to keep their homeland free not just for their generations, but future generations."
The USS Lexington is the first of only two Essex class aircraft carriers to be hit by a torpedo.
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