In September of 1958, Lt. Col. Poole was assigned to duty as the Commander of the 5040th Air Base Squadron at Shemya.

On the 22nd of December 1958 Lt. Col. George I. Poole, Jr. and 14 other personnel died in a plane crash on the Mount Illiamna approximately 120 miles southwest of Anchorage, Alaska.

Lt. Col. Poole was a Command Pilot and had been decorated with the Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star Medal, Air Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters and the Commendation Ribbon as well as numerous service awards for his various tours of duty.

(A mysterious example of the unfolding\pattern is the assignment
of Captain (Chaplain) James R. Scobey to Shemya in July 1960. As
Chaplain at McDill Air Force Base, Florida, Captain Scobey notified the next of kin of the tragedy in 1958. Later he conducted the religious memorial services. Now he is destined to conduct the Chaplain's portion of the memorialization and dedication of the
"Lt Col G. I. Poole Memorial Hall.")

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