Thursday March 28th, 2024 7:23PM

WWII sailor's remains to get law enforcement escort through Hall County

The remains of a World War II sailor killed in action will travel through Hall County Friday evening.

Frank Wood, 20, of Jackson, Ohio was killed during Pearl Harbor. He will be heading to his nearest living relative in Franklin, North Carolina.

"This is unusual in the fact this was a casualty from Pearl Harbor. Frank Wood was killed aboard the USS Oklahoma when it was torpedoed at Pearl Harbor during the initial attack. He went unidentified, his remains went unidentified for a number of years until recently, when the Navy was able to do that," said Hall County Sheriff Sgt. Stephen Wilbanks. "He was recovered from the ship years ago but at that time the technology just didn't exist to identify remains, so he was interred along with many of his shipmates as an unknown sailor for a long time."

A plane with Wood's remains will land at Hartsfield Jackson at 4 p.m. Wilbanks said he is unsure when exactly the procession will make it to Hall County around 6 p.m.

"It's reported to be a modest procession," said Wilbanks. "They're going to be traveling up the interstate, come in to Hall County on 985 and proceed straight through the county up 365 and on towards Franklin."

Wilbanks said the Sheriff's Office will update their Facebook and Twitter pages as the event comes closer. He said they will also provide a small escort and the public is encouraged to observe the procession.

"Perhaps from an overpass, without blocking traffic or endangering themselves or anybody else. Maybe up on 365 from a safe place on the shoulder of a road, maybe some of those business parking lots, places like that," said Wilbanks. "We want people to be safe, we know this is a busy highway, but if at all possible to line the roadways and the overpasses and just render honors for a few minutes to a fallen serviceman."

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