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Submitted: 9/4/08 • Approved: 12/7/09 • Last Updated: 4/29/23 • R52160-G0-S3
Arkansas
SEAMAN FIRST CLASS US Navy Reserve
World War II
November 23, 1923 - May 11, 1945
USS Bunker Hill
Killed In Action
On the morning of 11 May 1945, while supporting the Okinawa invasion, Bunker Hill was hit and severely damaged by two kamikazes. A Japanese Zero fighter appeared from a low cloud, dived toward the flight deck and dropped a 250-kilogram bomb, which went through the vessel and exploded in the sea. The Zero then crashed onto the flight deck, destroying parked planes full of fuel, causing a huge fire. The remains of the Zero went over the deck and dropped into the sea. Then, a scant 30 seconds later, a second Zero, piloted by Ensign Kiyoshi Ogawa, plunged into a suicide dive. The Zero went through the AA fire, dropped a 250-kilogram bomb, and crashed into the flight deck near the control tower as Kamikaze were trained to aim for the island superstructure (as was the case with the Sangamon). The bomb penetrated Bunker Hill’s flight deck and exploded. Gasoline fires flamed up and several explosions took place. The ship suffered the loss of 346 men killed, 43 missing, and 264 wounded. This was the single most deadly kamikaze attack on a U.S. ship during World War II.[citation needed] Although badly crippled, Bunker Hill managed to return to Bremerton via Pearl Harbor.
Contributed on 9/4/08 by debbraszymanski
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Record #: 52160