Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:44):
Welcome to the New Highs Show on Education. This is
your host, Pam La Clark, and this is an episode
of American servicemen and women tell their stories of survival.
I'm still working on shape hearing stories from the USS Strexler,
and we're reducing more of that today. And as I
(01:08):
mentioned before, I chose this because my grandfather died aboard
the USS Strexler when a comic howsie attacks took place
on May nineteen forty five. So we're going to get
right on end to share some more stories from survivors.
(01:33):
Emmo T. Studded or Studdard remembers battle station was an
upper handling room a five inch gun mount number two,
putting the five inch shell in the hoist to go
to the gun mount. When the first suicide plane hit,
(01:53):
it left us without power. And the rotating rack that
turned all the time when we were in battle did
not stop at the regular opening to get in and
out of the merry go round. We were trapped in
the cage. However, the opening that is to line up
(02:16):
with the opening in the wall somehow did stop exactly
where the outside peopil put the five inch shell on
the rack. This was the only way out. It was
just by fate that the opening did stop at the
exact spot I got out. When the second plane was
(02:37):
about to hit. I fell down the stairs to the
galley and then it exploded. I was hit by some
object in the lower spine which caused partly paralyzed lower extremities,
and right wrist was broken. When I got to the
main deck, water was rushing in. Just went into the
(03:01):
water and the bow went under within seven or eight
feet from me. Then the explosion and fire. I just
managed to stay ahead of the fire picked up by
the LCS and etc. Next story, James D. Armstrong remembers
(03:26):
I was on a twin forty millimeter gun mount number
forty two during the attack and lost some member and
lost some member of my gun crew, but don't remember
who or how many. Other than the Vedo, I received
a back entry as a result of a flying object
(03:49):
of some sort. I walked off the ship as it
was going under, and when I got into the water,
I discovered that one of my co two bottles in
my life belt did not function. I believe it was
William Miller who was in the water with with no
(04:11):
jacket or belt, so we stayed afloat with the help
of my belt until such time that we came up
upon an empty forty millimeter AMMO can, and at that
time he transferred to it. We were later picked up
(04:32):
by one of the lcs and etc. The next story
Salvatore the chia Fatali. I apologize, apologize if I see
any of these incorrectly. Remembers after first hit in after
(04:55):
fire room, mainsteam and superheated line were broken, it was
on the boiler front and lifted maffitees. Oh no huh,
lifted safeties, sending steam up the stack. All five men
(05:21):
went up the ladder to the top side. I went
up forward and spotted a big Jap brown bomber coming
at our ship. Our small guns were firing manually and
shells were hitting the fuselage of the plane. In the
(05:42):
next half a minute we were hit again. I got
off the deck and noticed plane, engine and ship attack
blowing to after part of the ship. Willard L. Jones
remembers this is the next one. I was on the
main deck with the second plane when the second plane
(06:05):
came in and it hit above my head. I was
knocked down two times. My hands were bleeding. I crawled
through the midship passageway as the ship was sinking with
a fantail going down first. It was turning over on
(06:30):
me with my knee hurt and my left ear hurting.
I kept climbing the ship as it was sinking. I
jumped off between the balkhead of the bridge and the
five inch gun. There was one raft in the water,
but I did not get in it. My life belt
(06:53):
was torn where pieces of steel had hit me, but
my life belt still worked. Next story George and parentheses Duke.
They called him Duke W. Payne. George, known as Duke W. Payne,
(07:16):
remembers I was on where I was the striker on
Mount number forty three, forty milimeter, as far as I know,
the only survivor. The second plane blew our Ammo and
I got blown off. I had shrapnel in my face.
(07:36):
My pointer pointers glasses were jarred too dark, and I
thought I was blind until like until water leaked in it.
Next story Joseph FLAPERI remembers Doctor Thompson and I were
at GQ station in the officers meeting room patching up
(08:01):
many casualties rebran out of tourniquets when MM two c.
McCulla crawled in with his leg almost cut off. I
was applying the belt as a tourniquet on him when
Chief more known as Chief Cook opened the hatch to
the passageway and yelled, docs get like docs A doctor
(08:27):
like doctors. Okay, get off we were or we are
going to get hit or get let me reread that, docs,
get off, we are going to get hit. Doctor Thompson
had one end of McCullough and I had the other.
While carrying him. Doctor and McCulla were in the passageway
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and I was about to step up when the second
plane hit with a tremendous force. The hatch slammed shut
and I was momentarily stunned, finding myself on the deck
by the water cooler inside the officer's meeting room. Looking up,
(09:13):
I saw the ocean water coming into the room. The
front hatch, which was always closed that GQ, was open.
I immediately got up and spam off the ship through the
open hatch. The fuel on the ocean was burning. I
(09:34):
applied pressure to the cartridges and my life belt and
only one inflated. The one had a hole in it.
I was swimming very fast because I was told when
a ship is sinking, it has a pulling force. When
I looked back, I saw the bow of the ship
(09:55):
go straight up and immediately straight down, not cause seeing
much suction. I saw two small ships in the distance
and swam as fast as I could toward them. While
swimming towards the small ships, A A. I think it's
(10:19):
two ms, MM two C, don't remember his name, was
without a life belt and asked for help. I told
him to hold onto my life belt and kick as
hard as you can, and I took him to the
life raft. As I continued to swim towards the small ships,
the same sailor again asked for help. He said the
(10:41):
fire was moving too close to the raft, and he
came after me and said to take off the life belt,
as it would be easier for both of us. I
told him to hang on and kick hard, because I
didn't intend to take the belt up off. We found
(11:04):
something floating in the water which he could hold on to,
and I told him to follow me and keep kicking
to move forward. He was saved. Lieutenant Commander Bidwell was
in the water singing, drinking rum and Coca cola, and
(11:25):
mates going down all around us. Mates were lost because
they had no life belts, heavy fuel and fire and
wounded that couldn't make it. I never saw doctor Thompson
and McCulla again. I was one of the first sailors
picked up, and being young and a good swimmer, I
(11:47):
wanted to jump back in and save others who needed help. However,
I was told they only had one farm gauge arm
mate on the show ship, and since I was a
farm mate, I was needed to treat the entered and wounded.
(12:08):
I recall one officer in a deep hole in his
back the size of a quarter. I gave him medication,
cleaned and treated it, and bandaged it. The other farm
and myself continued to treat the survivors. I also passed
out half a cup or more of whiskey to each
(12:30):
survivor to help calm them. The chief cook more said
to me, Doc, you know this cup of whiskey is
not enough for me. I gave him more in a
little bottle and told him to take it easy with it.
We treated many wounded. I didn't mind anything until we
(12:52):
were transferred to an apa and my knees started to shake.
I should have taken and some of that whiskey for myself.
We're going to take a quick commercial break, and we're
going to be right back with more stories. Are you
(13:16):
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(13:38):
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(13:58):
and happenings. Even to learn how you can become a volunteer,
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Education dot org. Welcome back to The New Heights Show
on Education. The next story I have for you is
from Morris E. Carlson remembers the morning we were sunk.
(14:25):
Guy was in one fireroom. I remember when we took
the first hit. We lost our lights and an auxiliary
lantern came on. There was no PA system to the
fireroom as we didn't know what was going on. After
the second hit, we lost our steam pressure and decided
(14:49):
to abandon ship. Some men tried to get out of
the port side hatch, which led to the port side passageway,
which was on fire. Richard Cameron came back to the
fireroom and told Roy Coleman and me to go up
the starboard ladder, which led to the starboard deck. We
(15:17):
were the only three left in the fireroom at this time.
Cameron went first, Coleman next, and then myself. When I
got on deck, the water was starting to go down
the hatch and the starboard lifeline was already under the water.
I recall I recall empty five inch shell casing sliding
(15:44):
down the deck into the water. Roy Coleman got hung
up on something and lost his life jacket while being
cut loose. He spent the time in the water with
me on my life. I also recalled when I got
on deck, I told the older blonde headed pharmacist mate
(16:09):
attending someone who looked like he had a hole in
his stomach. All this was happening in seconds. After leaving
the fireroom, I swam array away from the ship as
(16:29):
far as I could and watched her go down. The
bow seemed to be one hundred foot in the air
when it slid under. I only wish I would have
kept my life jacket I would have been I would
have given Roy Coleman one half next Gifford Clay Mills
(16:55):
remembers I was gun captain on Port Quad forty millimeters
gun mount. About six thirty word came over. The marine
fighters had made contact with six suicide planes, all Betties.
The marine fighters splashed two of them, but the other
(17:17):
four got through the range of our guns. They came
in on the starboard side. About four o'clock. All starboard
twenty foots and forty foot and five inch guns went
into action. Okay, maybe I'm looking at the wrong starboard twenties.
(17:42):
It looks like, you know, like you have the parentheses
and then you have, you know, just one for foot.
But I think that I'm reading that wrong, So do
that again. All starboard twenties, forty and five inch guns
went into action. Our guns knocked two of them down.
(18:07):
Two of them came on through the first one came
down in almost a dive and leveled off just above
the water at about two or three hundred yards out.
A marine Coursierre was on the second Betty, which came
(18:27):
at the ship from starboard to port, just in front
of the bow. The first plane hit aft off the
center of the starboard One of the wings caught under
the tubes with the Quad forty and turned I'm sorry
(18:48):
and turned it out of its Trunnian or Trunian. The
marine fighter veered off the second plane since it was
too long. It came up and over, hitting just in
front of the first smokestack. After the first plane hit,
(19:13):
our AMMO racks on the port side caught fire. I
told my crew to leave the gun tub. Our main
deck was already underwater and the bow was rising into
the air. When I came down from the port Quad forty,
the water was knee deep on the main deck. I
(19:36):
grabbed an n D five and powder canister with a
lock type ring, went forward port side, crawled up on
the port bow. With the help of lifelines, I dropped
off the port side. I was holding the powder canister
by the ring when I hit the water. Sucks from
(20:00):
the sinking ship caught me and I went down way down.
I remember the hull of the ship with the barnacles
on her side dragging against me. I'm not amazing. I
turned and put my feet on her side and tried
to walk up. My lungs were almost exploding, and the
(20:24):
last effort I hunkered close to the ship with my
feet under me and gave one shove against her side.
Thank god, I came up. When I became oriented, I
saw that the oil from the ship was on fire.
I started swimming away as fast as I could. Later,
(20:47):
I was picked up by an LCS Okay. Next story.
George Reem remembers my station was on the aft part
(21:08):
of the bridge to operate torpedo computers and logout. I
was sleeping on a locker on main deck when g
Q sounded. Looked to the destroyer on the starboard, then
above and beyond and saw a twin engine Betty and
(21:30):
one of our fighter planes on its tail. I could
see sunlight flickering off the enemy plane as bullets hit
it with a sight rate that didn't stop it. It
dove on the other destroyer to our starboard as bow
(21:54):
ships were firing. Our plane pulled off and jackplane pulled
up over target and flying close to the water towards
our ship. All firing stopped as the destroyers were in
each other's lines of fires. I saw jatplane turn upside
(22:17):
down close to the water and then turn right side
up before it crashed into set waterline into engine room.
As planes flipped over, wing tipped cleared water about three
feet and then the props were running or I'm sorry,
(22:40):
we're ruffling the water. Crash was a big thud and
the whole ship shook. All communications and power was knocked out.
Ships started to sink, but I was not aware of condition.
Second Betty came from starboard about one hundred foot off water.
(23:03):
Some guns were firing manually. Planes passed aft a fantawel
and flew up the port side about a half a
mile from the ship, and turned and came at us
from all the port bow. From off the port bow,
(23:29):
I could hear one twenty millimeter gun firing plane crashed
on number two torpedo mount with a terrific explosion. I
was on the ladder to forty millimeter gun deck and
was hit and that was hit on the head with
(23:56):
flying pieces of wood on the gun deck. The signal
line dropped around my neck. Plus the headphones I was wearing.
I asked for help but got none, and I cut
myself free with a hunting knife I carried, which I
then threw away. While doing this, forty millimeter shells were
(24:21):
going off like firecrackers, and a rack above or in
a rack about five feet from me. I went up
to starboard side of the bridge and started through wheelhouse.
Ship listed about forty five degrees to starboard. A radar
man helped me through the wheelhouse to port side. Radar
(24:47):
screen on top of mast was about three foot above
the water. Water was at our feet on the aft bridge.
Ship was almost going down straight. Torpedo officer Nickcullikan hit
(25:08):
water first, then radar man, then me. I could have
been the last one off the ship hit the water
fully clothed and had one extra sweater and foul leather
jacket zipped up. I activated my life belt life belt
(25:29):
with only one cartridge, and I found out at leaked.
I hit the water, swimming pyranically and went under thoughts
while struggling underwater. If I don't make it, my mother
collects ten thousand dollars insurance. And if I make it,
(25:52):
I get thirty days leave. I relaxed my body float,
looked up and could see light and swam to surface,
but trying to stay afloat. My clothes were starting Wait
(26:13):
a minute, my clothes were getting water logged. I n
zipped jacket, squeezed life belt and started to swim. I
got very tired and hollered for help. Heard hang on
and saw someone with a life with a floating net
(26:36):
excuse me, And saw someone with a floating neck swimming
towards me. It was m. Wilkin. He didn't see radar
man at all, or we didn't see the radar man
at all. We picked up one other person, Brutin b
R E U t O n.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (27:18):
Let's see the next story. Robert ellen antia A N
T E A U and b Anto remembers at g Q,
I was assigned. I'm sorry. I was assigned to the
(27:46):
forward repair party, which met in the chowel line for
chow hall. Sorry then signed Papas was in charge. We
were at this station when the first plane hit us,
and we got orders to at the Ford emergency pump
and generator and to run water lines aft to assist
(28:07):
in extinguishing the fires. I went top side on the
starboard side of the main deck with another member of
our group and started to run water hoses aft. He
started aft with one of the hose while I started
(28:29):
to couple the other, and when I realized that he
took the wrong end of the hose, I started to
run after him. When I looked up and saw the
second plane coming in, two Corsier fighters were doing their
best to knock it down. I looked around and realized
(28:52):
that I was the only one in that area of
the ship that appeared. I just appeared that the JAP
was trying to hit us on the starboard side, so
I decided I'd better get over to the port side.
(29:13):
I remember going through the area between the first and
second mount when the second mount fired a shot over
my head. The concussion knocked me down, but not for long.
By this time I got over to the port side,
the attacking plane had crossed our bow and was beginning
(29:36):
a tight arc and its attempt to hit us on
war boardroom. Trying to go from port to starboard. I
managed to just get inside the hatchway and hung on
When it hit. The explosion was tremendous. The ship started
(30:01):
to list list to starboard immediately after the hit, the
teo were starting to abandon or no sorry, maids were
starting to abandon ship. There was a life raft near
me which I helped with which I helped out or
(30:22):
cut loose loose so it looked like out okay. I
went forward a few feet and slid down the side
for the hall when it was listing about forty five degrees.
My life belt worked. I swam a short distance and
none looked back and saw the bow of the ship
(30:46):
sticking straight up before it disappeared. Since there was a
lot of burning oil and I was not injured, I
decided to swim against the wind and in a town
to get away from the fire. At this time, I
remember a plane dove over the area. I could not
(31:10):
identify it. I instinctively took off my belt and sank
under the water. When I came up, I recognized it
as one of our planes. Put my life jacket belt
back on and hurt. Someone yell for help. I swam
over to him. One mate was helping another mate who
(31:31):
did not have a life belt and asked for some assistance,
which I was glad to provide. Shortly thereafter, the mate
with the life belt wandered off to help someone else.
It was not too long later, too long after this,
that a small ship from someone else, Okay it was
(32:00):
not yet, I was sorry. It was not too long
after this that a small boat from the lcs's came
along and picked us up. Became my friends. Thank you
for staying and hearing all of those amazing stories, heartbreaking
(32:26):
and amazing. I hope that you appreciate being an American
if you are an American, and I hope that if
you haven't thought of the price that people have made
through many wars as the blessing it is. I just
(32:53):
hope you see that nothing is free, not to take
things for granted. People played a very heavy price for
the freedoms you have and that I have. Until next time,