Gov. Beshear Recognizes Sacrifice of Kentucky Soldier Killed in World War II

Governor orders flags at state buildings lowered to half-staff Wednesday

FRANKFORT, Ky. (July 28, 2026) - Gov. Andy Beshear recognizes the sacrifice of a Kentucky soldier who was killed during World War II but who was not accounted for until Jan. 29, 2026.

In the summer of 1944, U.S. Army Pvt. Mike Raymond McDowell was a member of Company B, 1st Battalion, 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), better known as Merrill's Marauders. He was reported killed in action during the Battle of Myitkyina in Burma. Unfortunately, the limited records that survived the battle don't have details surrounding his loss, though it is likely he was killed somewhere between Radhapur and Sitapur. McDowell's remains were never identified, and he was declared non-recoverable in April 1952.

Following the war, American Graves Registration Service teams conducted recovery operations in the Myitkyina area and recovered additional remains, some of which could not be identified and were eventually transferred to the Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii before being buried as Unknowns at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP) in Honolulu.

Beginning in 2018, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) initiated a project to exhume remains believed to be associated with the Battle of Myitkyina. In November 2021 and January 2022, DPAA personnel disinterred Unknowns designated X-516 Barrackpore and X-60 Kalaikunda from the NMCP and transferred them to a DPAA laboratory for further analysis. There, scientists used modern forensic techniques to identify McDowell.

There will be a repatriation service for McDowell at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, July 29, at Kentucky Veterans Cemetery Central in Radcliff.

The Governor has ordered that flags at all state buildings be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Wednesday in honor of McDowell and encourages individuals, businesses and organizations throughout the commonwealth to join in this tribute.

Flag status information is available at governor.ky.gov/flag-status.

###