11 From Tustin Station Died : Rites Set for Marines Killed in Japan Crash

A memorial service will be conducted Friday for 11 Marines from the U.S. Marine Corps Helicopter Air Station in Tustin who are among 17 men presumed to have been killed in a helicopter crash off Japan’s southern coast.

Lt. Timothy Hoyle said the service will be held at the helicopter station.

The CH-53D Sea Stallion helicopter heading for Okinawa from Japan crashed Monday after reporting mechanical problems 15 miles from the island of Yakushima.

U.S. military authorities abandoned the search for survivors Tuesday and said all 17 men aboard were presumed dead.

“There has been no sign of survivors, and I don’t think the chances of finding any now are very good,” a spokesman for the U.S. Forces-Japan military command said.

Ten of the 11 Marines stationed at the Tustin station were identified Tuesday by a Marine official in Washington. All were members of Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 462.

They were identified as:

- Capt. Donald E. Sellers, 27, of Inglewood.

- Lance Cpl. Thomas J. Agnew Jr., 21, of Villanova, Pa.

- Cpl. Stephen H. Blates, 22, of Chicago.

- Lance Cpl. Andrew G. Bunn, 23, of Phoenix, Ariz.

- Cpl. Robert J. Murray, 22, of Ferndale, Mich.

- Capt. James R. Reese, 27, of Bellmawr, N.J.

- Cpl. Paul M. Salcedo, 24, of Cherokee, N.C.

- Sgt. Daryl S. Thom, 28, of Everson, Wash.

- Cpl. Thomas S. Tulendo, 24, of Springfield, Va.

- Capt. Jeffrey H. Tuset, 26, of St. Paul, Minn.

The 11th Marine’s identification was not release pending notification of his family.

Master Sgt. John Nicholas Gruber Jr., 38, of Aptos, also was among the 17 Marines presumed dead. He was stationed in Okinawa, officials said.