Lyle Cecil Weidner
Private Lyle C. Weidner served with Depot Company B, 4th Base Depot, during the campaign for the Solomon Islands.
He was killed in the bombing of LST-448 at Vella Lavella, on 1 October 1943
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 339824
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
August 2, 1923
at Chicago, IL
Parents
Cecil Ernest Weidner
Mae Henrietta (Wheeler) Weidner
Education
Details unknown
Occupation & Employer
Family farm
Service Life
Entered Service
January 5, 1942
at Chicago, IL
Home Of Record
North Judson, IN
Next Of Kin
Parents, Cecil & May Weidner
Military Specialty
—
Primary Unit
4th Base Depot (Co B)
Campaigns Served
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
Weidner trained as an amphibian tractor crewman and served with the 21st Marines before joining the Base Depot.
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
On 1 October 1943, Private Weidner’s company was assigned to unload LST-448 at Narowai Beach, Vella Lavella. The ship was carrying ammunition, fuel, medical supplies, and a company of Paramarines to assist in the ongoing ground campaign.
The depot men were hard at work when the deck guns began to fire. Japanese dive bombers appeared overhead and quickly dropped three bombs on the LST – at least one of which detonated in the cargo hold where Weidner and his comrades were working.
Eight members of Depot Company B were killed outright, and several more were wounded. A further five, including Private Weidner, were initially reported as missing. However, it was soon determined that they were killed in the explosion and fire, and their bodies were either not recovered or not identified.
Burial Information or Disposition
None confirmed; possibly buried as an unknown in the Vella Lavella island cemetery.
Next Of Kin Address
The Weidners lived on a rural route outside the town of Monterey.
