By N. Albert Bacharach, Jr. — U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs accredited attorney (Accreditation No. 14363; VA POA Code 4EQ), Florida Bar No. 209783. Fifty years representing veterans nationwide.
My records were destroyed in the 1973 records center fire. Can I still get benefits?
Yes. Roughly 16 to 18 million personnel files burned at the National Personnel Records Center in July 1973, mostly affecting Army veterans discharged between 1912 and 1960 and Air Force veterans discharged between 1947 and 1964 with last names from Hubbard through Z. When records are destroyed through no fault of the veteran, VA carries a heightened obligation to assist in developing the claim and to consider the benefit of the doubt, and it can rebuild your service history from morning reports, hospital admission cards, and Surgeon General’s Office extracts. Credible statements from you and from those who served with you are evidence. If you were denied years ago because your file could not be found, that decision is worth a second look.
What is new: VA announced on August 24, 2026 that it has changed how it handles these claims, so affected veterans are no longer asked to submit the same reconstruction forms over and over. The change is welcome. It is also narrower than it sounds — the law has protected these veterans for more than thirty years, and the bigger opportunity is for those who were turned away long ago.
What Happened in 1973
In July 1973, a fire at the National Personnel Records Center near St. Louis destroyed an estimated 16 to 18 million military personnel files. There were no copies.
Who Was Affected?
- Army veterans discharged between 1912 and 1960
- Air Force veterans discharged between 1947 and 1964 whose last names begin with Hubbard through Z
For those veterans, the paperwork that burned was often the only proof of an in-service injury, a hospitalization, or a unit assignment — precisely the evidence a disability claim turns on decades later.
What VA Is Fixing
When a veteran’s records are missing because of the fire, VA is supposed to rebuild the service history from alternate sources: unit morning reports, hospital admission cards, and Surgeon General’s Office extracts. To search for those, VA asks the veteran to complete two National Archives forms — NA Form 13055 (medical treatment) and NA Form 13075 (service history).
In practice, veterans were asked to fill out those same forms again and again. Different claims processors could not easily see what had already been submitted, so each new stage of development generated another request for information already sitting in the file. Every round of duplicate paperwork added months.
What VA Announced on August 24, 2026
VA reports that it began using a more consistent process in July 2026. Three changes matter:
- One packet, not repeated requests. Affected veterans now receive a single comprehensive packet at the start containing both forms. The completed packet is saved and reused for all later development on the claim.
- No duplicate paperwork. If the forms are already on file, claims processors are not to ask again — unless the National Personnel Records Center specifically needs different information.
- Better internal visibility. VA is reorganizing how fire-related records and forms are displayed internally so everything sits in one place, which is what allowed the duplication in the first place.
The Law Already Favors You — and Has for Thirty Years
This is the part VA’s announcement understates. When a veteran’s service records were destroyed through no fault of his own, the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims held in O’Hare v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 365 (1991), that VA carries a heightened obligation to assist in developing the claim, a heightened duty to consider the benefit of the doubt under 38 C.F.R. § 3.102, and a heightened duty to explain its reasoning. The Court reaffirmed the point in Ussery v. Brown, 8 Vet. App. 64 (1995).
One clarification worth making, because it is often overstated: the fire does not lower your burden of proof. What it does is raise VA’s obligations — to search harder, to weigh the evidence you can produce more carefully, and to explain itself if it denies you.
And you can produce evidence other than official records. VA can accept credible lay statements from you, from men you served with, or from anyone else with direct knowledge of what happened. Your own account of an injury is evidence. So are letters home, photographs, unit histories, and the recollections of family members.
If You Were Denied Before, Read This Carefully
Many veterans were turned away decades ago with some version of “your records could not be located,” accepted it, and never filed again. That was frequently wrong when it happened, and it is worth revisiting now.
Depending on your circumstances, there may be more than one route back in — a supplemental claim with new and relevant evidence, or, where VA got the law or the facts wrong on the record before it, a motion alleging clear and unmistakable error. A successful CUE motion is paid as though the original decision had been correct from the start, which for a 1970s or 1980s denial can mean a very substantial retroactive award. Our firm has done exactly this: in Baker v. McDonough, benefits were awarded retroactive to 1992.
What To Do Now
- File or reopen your claim at va.gov. Do not wait for VA to reach out to you.
- Say plainly that your records were lost in the 1973 fire. It triggers the alternate-source search and the heightened duty to assist.
- Gather what you do have — your DD-214, discharge papers, letters, photographs, and the names of anyone who served with you.
- Get help. Call VA at 1-800-827-1000, work with an accredited representative, or call or text our office at (352) 378-9859.
The Bottom Line
A fire in a government warehouse fifty-three years ago is the government’s fault, not yours, and it is not a reason you cannot be paid the benefits you are owed. If you have been told your records do not exist, that is the beginning of your claim, not the end of it. The evaluation is free and there is no fee unless you win.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different.
Related Reading
- reopening a claim the VA denied years ago
- how far back VA disability back pay can go
- records requests and other veteran resources
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