BLACKSHEAR, Ga. — The remains of a U.S. Army airman killed in the line of duty during Word War II will be returned home to his family for burial.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced the remains of Pvt. Bennett H. Waters, 26 of Blackshear, were identified and will make their way home to Georgia for burial.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
DPAA said Waters was assigned to the 17th Bombardment Squadron, 27th Bombardment Group on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines.
During combat in April 1942, Waters was captured and held as a prisoner of war by the Empire of Japan, according to DPAA.
TRENDING STORIES:
- Weather staying dry and breezy in metro Atlanta
- Neighbors question why proposal would bring 900 homeless people to Atlanta community
- Gas stations who don’t pause fuel tax collection will be investigated, Georgia AG says
DPAA said Waters was interned in the Philippines until December 1944 when U.S. forces attacked the Oryoku Maru, unaware that allied POWs were on board, and the ship sank in Subic Bay.
Waters was taken to what is now known as Taiwan aboard another Japanese craft, the Enoura Maru. The Japanese reported Waters died on Jan. 9, 1945 when U.S. forces attacked and sank it, according to the DPAA.
After the war, 312 bodies were recovered by U.S. military personnel from a mass grave and the remains were taken to Honolulu for burial at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as the Punchbowl.
DPAA said staff disinterred remains from the Punchbowl for identification and Waters’ remains were identified, following DNA analysis.
The DPAA said a rosette will be placed next to Waters’ name on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines to show his remains have been accounted for, as of June 18, 2025.
DPAA said Waters will be returned to his hometown of Blackshear for burial, with the burial date yet to be determined.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2026 Cox Media Group
