Chapter II: Historical Record
(continued)

The USS ARIZONA

Battle Damage

At the time of the attack, the ARIZONA was moored at berth F-7, with the repair ship VESTAL moored alongside. The vessel suffered hits from several bombs and was strafed and then about 8:10 a.m. the battleship took a death blow. Petty Officer Noburo Kanai, in a high-altitude bomber, had earned the title of crack bombardier while training for the mission. Kanai was credited with dropping the bomb that blew up the ARIZONA (Prange 1981:513). The 1,760-lb. projectile hurtled through the air, reportedly striking near turret No. 2 and penetrating deep into the battleship's innards before exploding near the forward magazine. In a tremendous blast, the ARIZONA blew up. In an instant, most of the men aboard were killed, including Rear Admiral I.C. Kidd and Capt. F. Van Valkenburgh, both posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. The blast from the ARIZONA blew men off the decks of surrounding ships and threw tons of debris, including parts of bodies, all over the harbor. Survivors of the attack also claimed that the ARIZONA was hit by one or possibly two torpedoes. The fury of the attack continued unabated, with the ARIZONA reportedly receiving eight bomb hits as it sank. Abandoned at 10:32 a.m., the ship's burning superstructure and canted masts loomed through the smoke that blanketed the harbor.

Figure 2.22. Aftermath: The USS ARIZONA from port bow looking aft. (NPS: USAR Collection)

The ARIZONA received the most serious battle damage of the ships attacked on December 1941. The resultant explosion of ammunition and fuel demolished the forward section of the vessel, which collapsed inside the hull, and killed most of the ship's complement. Six days after the attack, the senior surviving officer from the ARIZONA forwarded the ship's action report to CINCPAC Admiral Kimmel and noted: "The USS ARIZONA is a total loss except the following is believed salvageable: fifty-caliber machine guns in maintop, searchlights on after searchlight platform, the low catapult on quarterdeck and the guns of numbers 3 and 4 turrets" (Memorandum, Commanding Officer, USS ARIZONA to CINCPAC, Pearl Harbor, T.H., December 13, 1941. Copy on file at the USS Arizona Memorial).

<<< PREVIOUS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CONTINUE >>>