WASHINGTON (WGXA) – The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced a significant development Tuesday, revealing that U.S. Army Pfc. Hood E. Cole, of Atlanta, who lost his life during World War II, has been officially accounted for as of February 22, 2023.
Assigned to L Company, 3rd Battalion, 276th Infantry Regiment, 70th Infantry Division, Cole met his fate on January 14, 1945, during an attack by German forces near Baerenthal, France. Unfortunately, historical records do not pinpoint the exact location where he was killed, and due to the intense fighting, his body couldn’t be immediately recovered.
Efforts to locate Cole’s remains commenced in 1947 when the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) searched the Baerenthal area. Despite multiple investigations, no leads were found regarding the disposition of Cole’s remains, leading to his non-recoverable declaration on May 11, 1951.
Ongoing research by DPAA historians uncovered potential associations between Cole and two sets of remains, X-9441 and X-9442, buried in Ardennes American Cemetery in Neupré, Belgium. Disinterred in April 2018, the remains were transferred to the DPAA Laboratory at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, for analysis.
Scientists from DPAA utilized anthropological and dental analysis, while the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System employed mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis to positively identify Cole’s remains.
Cole, whose name is currently on the Walls of the Missing at Epinal American Cemetery in Dinozé, France, alongside others missing from WWII, will now be marked as accounted for with a rosette placed next to his name.
The burial ceremony for Pfc. Hood E. Cole is scheduled for January 15, 2024, in Canton, Georgia. Family and funeral-related inquiries can be directed to the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
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