OKEECHOBEE — Okeechobee County commissioners approved renaming a road in the county in honor of POW/MIA Corporal Earl H. Hansel.

The board designated Center Street, off of Berman Road, as acceptable to be renamed for the veteran. The request for renaming a road in honor of Cpl. Hansel was requested by Betty Williamson.

“All of our veterans are heroes to us, but Earl Henry Hansel is special,” Betty Williamson told the Okeechobee County Commission in 2019 at its June 27 meeting.

Hansel was from Okeechobee and served in the U.S. Army in the Korean War. He served with Company F, 2nd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division.

According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, in mid-May 1951, Hansel’s regiment was holding a defensive position on a hillcrest between the Hongchong and Soyang rivers, in the central sector of the larger U.N. defensive line called the “No Name Line.” Their position was strong, but on May 16 it came under attack from overwhelming numbers of Chinese and North Korean troops. The attack was slowed, but not stopped, by minefields, barbed wire and heavy artillery fire. The enemy eventually began overrunning the area, forcing parts of the regiment to fall back to new positions.

By May 18, enemy units were infiltrating to the rear of the regiment and some companies had to redeploy to face this threat from behind. The 38th Infantry ultimately held the line, but suffered many casualties during this massive attack — one of whom was Hansel.

Hansel was awarded the Prisoner of War medal and a Purple Heart for his service.

Sarah Carter, Okeechobee County veterans service officer, presented the board with the new sign that will be placed in the county.

“We’ll make sure it looks nice and notify the family once it’s posted,” said Carter.

The top of the sign carrying Earl H. Hansel’s name is green with white lettering and a POW/MIA emblem. It measures 6 by 42 inches and is double-sided and reflective. The black sign with white lettering and a POW/MIA emblem is 18x24, high-intensity, reflective, single-sided 0.080” gauge aluminum.

Mrs. Williamson explained that Cpl. Hansel’s remains were not returned to the United States. She said a fellow prisoner of his in North Korea visited with the family in Okeechobee and told them that he knew where Cpl. Hansel was buried. Over a decade ago, two of his siblings provided DNA so that when the remains are found, they can be identified.