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The 80-foot patrol torpedo boat PT-109 commanded by Lieutenant (junior grade) John F. Kennedy was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer on Aug. 2, 1943, during the Solomon Islands campaign during World War II.
Two crewmen were killed and 11 survived. Kennedy's actions were instrumental in saving his surviving crew which earned him several commendations and made him a war hero. Back problems stemming from the incident required months of hospitalization at Chelsea Naval Hospital and plagued him the rest of his life. More
