My Cooter's History Blog has become about 80% World War II anyway, so I figured to start a blog specific to it, especially since we're commemorating its 70th anniversary and we are quickly losing this "Greatest Generation." The quote is taken from Pearl Harbor survivor Frank Curre, who was on the USS Tennessee that day. He died Dec. 7, 2011, seventy years to the day. His photo is below at right.
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
The Wreck of the Destroyer USS Jacob Jones-- Part 3
Joseph Tidwell was on engine room watch and the Jones came to a complete stop. Word was passed along to abandon ship. He scrambled to the deck just as the second torpedo hit.
The survivors managed to get five or six rafts from their rope cradles that hung along the railings and jumped into the freezing water. "If you wanted to survive, you swam. I was pretty good," he said.
And swim fast to a raft he did. He climbed onto a raft and saw the ship's damage. "There was a big hole in the side of the ship where the torpedo hit right under the officers quarters."
As the ship quickly sank, the depth charges, which were set for a particular depth started to go off, killing more survivors.
--GreGen
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