Military IDs Marine who was killed on Pacific island in WWII

EWING, Va. (AP) — The U.S. Military has recovered the remains of a 19-year-old Marine who was killed fighting the Japanese during World War II.

The Department of Defense said in a statement Thursday that it identified Pfc. William F. Cavin. He died Nov. 20, 1943, fighting for the strategically located Pacific island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands.

Cavin is among dozens of Marines recently recovered from Betio by History Flight, a Florida-based nonprofit. The military then identified the remains using DNA and other means.

History Flight spokeswoman Katherine Rasdorf said by phone that Cavin was born in Ewing, Virginia, near the Kentucky and Tennessee borders. His next of kin was listed as Henry T.