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The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION to the
for service as set forth in the following
CITATION:
"For
outstanding performance in action as a minesweeping unit during
operations against enemy aggressor forces in Korea on 11 and 12
October 1950. Operating as a part of Task Element 95.62, the U.S.S.
PIRATE assisted in the extremely hazardous and difficult task
of sweeping and buoying a channel, 2,000 yards wide and 14 miles
in length, to the outer limits of Wonsan Harbor, during which
time heavy concentrations of enemy contact mines were swept in
the face of the ever-present threat of mine explosions and attack
from hidden hostile gun batteries on the beaches and surrounding
islands. On 12 October, after leading the assault formation in
a dual role of Flaghip for Commander Mine Division THIRTY-TWO
and minesweeper in the clearance of a channel through two heavy
contact-type minefields, the PIRATE encountered a third field
of extreme density, struck a mine and sank in approximately four
minutes with casualties numbered at six killed and forty-three
wounded. During rescue operations, her survivors were repeatedly
fired upon by enemy shore batteries and machine guns. The fortitude,
superb teamwork and unrelenting determination of each individual
serving on board the PIRATE were contributing factors in the success
of vital minesweeping operations and were in keeping with the
highest traditions of the United States Naval Service."
Source: Presidential Citation Letter from Secretary of
the Navy C. S. Thomas, USS Pirate File, Box 474, Ships
History Division, Naval Historical Center, Washington, DC.
10 April 2001