HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. - After 55 years of trying to forget all about his experiences in World War II, 78-year-old Larry Tunks is honoring eight fallen comrades this Memorial Day.
Tunks, who was aboard the naval ship Perry when it sunk in the battle of Peleliu in 1944, located the ship just south of the island nation of Palau after being inspired by Tom Brokaw's 1998 book, ''The Greatest Generation.''
The Perry, a destroyer that was converted into a minesweeper, was the lone American ship sunk in the battle. The remains of the ship rest with 38 Japanese ships in the area.
''I had an urge,'' he said. ''Something just told me I had to go back ... Fifty-five years later, I went back and found it.''
Tunks made the journey to Palau on April 27 after spending two years scouring through Naval records on the sinking and his own recollections of the ship's position.
The only thing Tunks did not do himself was make the dive. Because of his age, he hired two divers to make the 240-foot underwater trek. The divers searched area while Tunks waited anxiously on a boat.
On May 1, the Perry was found by Tunks' divers in the same place where it sank, 700 yards off the shore from Anguar, which is the southernmost island in Pilau's chain.
By finding the ship, Tunks bested others interested in World War II sunken ships who spend thousands of dollars trying to find the sunken crafts.
The main problem for the other divers was the listed location of the ship in official naval records. Tunks' recollection of the location where the ship sank showed that the coordinates listed were more than 2,000 yards from the actual location of the ship.
''There's no question it's the Perry. It's clearly an American ship and a destroyer,'' said Sam Scott, an Olympia, Wash., native who has been diving in Palau since 1983.
Since Tunks found the ship, both Scott and underwater photographer Kevin Davidson have made two dives to the Perry.
In addition, four other Palau divers have visited it and an expedition of divers from the United States is being formed to examine the ship in June or July.
''I spent a small fortune looking for the ship. When you're looking for something that's 300 feet long and 45 feet wide, you need something to go on, or a lot of luck. Sounds like Tunks had a little of both,'' diver Bill Remick said.
Tunks said the search cost about $10,000, which was paid by him and three fishing buddies who wanted to share his adventure.
According to Remick, the Perry is one of about five U.S. warships sunk in relatively shallow waters of the Pacific Ocean in World War II and accessible to divers.
It was moored at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, but escaped Japanese bombs. During the attack, the Perry managed to steam out of the harbor. Its gun crews were credited with downing one of the Japanese planes, according to the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
The ship's Pearl Harbor ties make it especially alluring to divers who explore World War II wrecks.
