A solemn tribute: USS Thresher memorial service marks 61 years

Staff report
·1 min read

KITTERY, Maine — A memorial service honoring the 129 crewmembers who lost their lives onboard the USS Thresher 61 years ago will be held Saturday, April 13, at Traip Academy.

The 1 p.m. service is hosted by the Thresher Base Submarine Veterans in partnership with Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.

On April 10, 1963, Thresher, a nuclear-powered attack submarine, built at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and commissioned in 1961, was lost approximately 100 miles east of Cape Cod while conducting sea trials. Onboard were 16 officers, 96 enlisted men, and 17 civilian technicians.

'A submariner through and through': Family members recall loss and legacy of USS Thresher

A Navy investigation concluded Thresher, in all likelihood, sunk due to a failure in its piping and a subsequent loss of power. She sank toward the ocean floor until imploding from the enormous underwater pressure of the sea, instantly killing all aboard.

Each year, the Thresher Base Submarine Veterans host a ceremony to honor those lost to ensure they will never be forgotten. A legacy of Thresher and its crew is the Navy’s Submarine Safety program, launched in June 1963. The quality assurance program was designed to improve safety measures and prevent such a tragedy from happening again.

At Saturday's memorial service, Capt. Daniel Reiss, commander of Submarine Squadron Two, will be the keynote speaker.

Officers and crew salute the colors atop USS Thresher (SSN 593) on Aug. 3, 1961, outside Building #5 at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Thresher was lost at sea on April 10, 1963. All 129 men on board died.
Officers and crew salute the colors atop USS Thresher (SSN 593) on Aug. 3, 1961, outside Building #5 at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Thresher was lost at sea on April 10, 1963. All 129 men on board died.

Representing the Thresher families will be Tom and Mark Guerette. They are the sons of Paul Alfred Guerette, a Marine engineering technician from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard who was lost on Thresher.

There will be a wreath-laying ceremony along the water’s edge immediately following the service.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: USS Thresher memorial service marks 61 years since submarine tragedy