Family of "Mayaguez Marine" Left Behind Found

UPDATE: Vietnam veteran searches for fallen soldier's family

The News Center

WTAP

Sheena Steffen

UPDATE: December 23, 2017

In between our shows, the family of Danny contacted us and explained how shocked they were about learning a veteran was searching for their brother.

Danny's family is now scattered between Marietta and Williamstown and has brothers in Parkersburg and New York City. They also have hopes in contacting Dan shortly.

A veteran who fought in what is known as the last battle of the Vietnam War continues to seek for a fallen soldier’s family.

After many years of research, Vietnam veteran Dan Fields discovered a marine from Waverly West Virginia was left behind in the Mayaguez recovery back in 1975.

According to Fields, Private Danny Marshall was one of the three marines left behind during an evacuation and never returned home. He states that for almost 20 years the Military denied anyone was left behind, but eventually those who were the last to interact with the three marines came forward and shared their experiences.

Fields, being a native to West Virginia and personally involved in the Mayaguez recovery, felt that he should reach out to the fallen soldier’s family.

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Veterans of Last Battle of Vietnam Remember Koh Tang

Koh Tang: Survivors of last Vietnam battle go back to honor missing comrades
Stars and Stripes
Matthew M Burke
June 28, 2015

KOH TANG, Cambodia — Forty years ago, scores of inexperienced U.S. servicemembers waged a largely forgotten battle in a largely unknown place to rescue a mysterious ship from an unfamiliar enemy.

Forty-one American servicemembers were killed in the operation, including three Marines who were left behind, ending the dark chapter of U.S. involvement in Southeast Asia — one that many seemed more than willing to forget.

In May, veterans of the battle of Koh Tang, also known as the “Mayaguez Incident” or the last battle of the Vietnam War, returned to the small, jungle-blanketed Cambodian island in the Gulf of Thailand for the anniversary of the ill-fated mission.

They disregarded persistent health problems, braved the unrelenting demons that have plagued their thoughts since 1975, and carried a message to the U.S. government and the American public at large: We will never forget.
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Return to Koh Tang: Veterans of Mayaguez Operation Return for the 40th Anniversary
Jun 24, 2015

On May 12, 2015 veterans and members of their families returned to Koh Tang, a small island off the Cambodian coast to commemorate what is considered by many to be the last battle of the Vietnam War.

Produced by Matthew M. Burke/Stars and Stripes