U.S. soldiers plant thousands of flags at cemetery in Memorial Day tradition

Record ID: 876930

  • Title: U.S. soldiers plant thousands of flags at cemetery in Memorial Day tradition
  • Date: 25th May 2017
  • Summary: ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES (MAY 25, 2017) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS GUARDING TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER TIGHT SHOT TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER "ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY" SIGN VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS MARCHING, CARRYING U.S. FLAGS ON THEIR BACKS SOLDIERS' FEET MARCHING TOWARD GRAVES VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS PLACING FLAGS IN FRONT OF GRAVESTONES (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPECIALIST HENRY LAJARA OF BRONX, NEW YORK, SAYING: "The significance of 'flags in' is it gives us, the Old Guard, the opportunity to honor our fallen brothers and sisters, and this is a time that our whole unit gets together and actually conducts a mission." SOLDIERS PLACING FLAGS IN FRONT OF GRAVESTONES VARIOUS OF "SECTION 23" SIGN TIGHT SHOT ROW OF GRAVESTONES SOLDIERS WALKING, CARRYING FLAGS ON THEIR BACKS (SOUNDBITE) (English) SERGEANT ADAM GRINE OF ASTORIA, OHIO, SAYING: "Over 1,000 soldiers will pay honor tribute to the men and women that came before us and their spouses. We'll lay over 284,000 flags at the over 400,000 graves at the Arlington National Cemetery." VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS PLACING FLAGS IN FRONT OF GRAVESTONES TIGHT SHOT FLAGS
  • Embargoed: 8th June 2017 22:01
  • Keywords: 3rd Infantry Regiment Old Guard Arlington National Cemetery flag in Memorial Day
  • Location: ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES
  • City: ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
  • Reuters ID: LVA0016IC8G93
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Ahead of Memorial Day weekend, U.S. soldiers conducted their annual "flags in" ritual on Thursday (May 25), placing thousands of flags in front of headstones to honor fallen service members at Arlington National Cemetery.
    All available soldiers in the 3rd Infantry Regiment, or Old Guard, participated, the cemetery said.
    They carried more than 284,000 American flags on their backs to display, according to Sergeant Adam Grine of Astoria, Ohio.
    The event, which dates back to 1948, typically takes several hours to complete.
    According to tradition, all flags will be removed after Memorial Day.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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