Locating WWII Buffalo Sailor’s Sunken Submarine

CITY OF NIAGARA, N.Y. — A World War II Navy veteran from Buffalo was lost at sea when his crew’s submarine sank in combat. After 80 years lost on the ocean floor, a local sailor’s ship has been found.

A Niagara County family is celebrating the life of their late uncle, Vincent Dallessandro, after the rediscovery of his ship.

“We wish he was still here so we could talk to him, but that obviously wasn’t going to happen,” Dallessandro’s nephew Donald Mullen said.

US Navy – Naval History and Heritage Command

Two years before Donald was born, his family experienced unimaginable heartbreak when his Uncle Vincent never returned from fighting in World War II.

“We heard what a great person he was, but we never really knew him,” Donald said.

Dalessandro, a Buffalo native, was a torpedo mate in the U.S. Navy, sailing aboard the submarine USS Harder.

US Navy – Naval History and Heritage Command

At the end of 1944, a catastrophe struck. A Japanese attack sank the submarine off the coast of the Philippines, taking the entire crew with it, including Donald’s uncle Vincent.

For almost 80 years, his submarine has never been seen again until today.

“I just couldn’t believe it, it was 80 years ago,” said another Dallessandro nephew, James Mullen.

Donald’s brother James saw that the Lost 52 Project, founded to discover and commemorate the 52 submarines lost during World War II, had just identified their uncle’s sub, more than 3,000 feet away below sea level.

Tim Taylor and the Lost 52 Project

“We were happy that they found him, maybe we can find out more about him,” Donald said.

A discovery that allows the family to turn the page on what they always thought happened to their uncle.

“Can you imagine how these guys felt: all of a sudden their ship is destroyed and they are going to die. They are living the last minutes of their lives,” James said. “I’m sure he was thinking of his sisters, his brothers, his mother and his father.”

WKBW

Dalessandro has since earned a Legion of Merit and a Purple Heart for his service.

It’s moments like these that the Mullen brothers will forever pass on to honor their uncle’s legacy.

“I think it’s something he deserves. He died for our country and it is our responsibility to keep his memory alive,” James said.