The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy and Marine Corps Medal to Fireman Second Class Bill Sweatt, United States Navy, for heroic and courageous conduct at the risk of life not involving conflict with an armed enemy, as a member of a whaleboat party volunteering to attempt the rescue of U.S.S. LEXINGTON personnel when that vessel sank on 8 May 1942. Since darkness made it difficult to detect the presence of survivors in the water, the whaleboat party proceeded along the entire portside and then the starboard side of the LEXINGTON, which was already listing 20 to 30 degrees. Her flight deck was burning from stem to stern; an explosion had thrown planes and debris into the air, and other planes were in imminent danger of sliding on to the whaleboat. Nevertheless, the search continued until dense smoke screened the ship and made further search futile.