New Fees at USS Arizona Memorial

From the March 29, 2023, Beat of Hawaii.

As of April 15, a new visitor fee will be implemented at Pearl Harbor to generate funds for the park's maintenance and provide further exhibits, new technology for visitors and security.

The fee for parking goes from free to $7 a day.  There willstill be no charge for admission and the Pearl Harbor National Memorial and USS Arizona Memorial program will remain free of charge.

To this day, the USS Arizona Memorail remains the number one in-demand destination for Hawaii tourists.

That Is Still Very, Very Reasonable.  --GreGen

USS Arizona Survivor Lou Conter is 101-- Part 5

Organizers have set a theme of "Everlasting Legacy" for the ceremony, highlighting how fewer and fewer survivors remain.

"We honestly have to know and be prepared that eventually we won't have the ability to connect with their stories and have them with us anymore," David Kilton of the NPS said.

Conter hasn't forgotten his shipmates.

He said he'd like the military to try to identify USS Arizona sailors whose bodies were found and buried as unknowns in a Honolulu cemetery after the war.

"They should never give up on that issue.  If they're ever identified, I'm sure their families would want to bury them at home or wherever, but they should never give up on trying to identfy them," he said.

--GreGen

USS Arizona Survivor Lou Conter is 101-Years-Old-- Part 4

This year's remembrance ceremony is the first to be open to the public since 2019.  The pandemic forced the adoption of strict public health measures for the last two years.

David Kilton, the National Park Service's chief interpreter for Pearl Harbor, said he's not sure how many people will attend, but he's anticipating 2,000 to 3,000 people.  

It will be held at the Pearl Harbor National Memorial visitors center, which overlooks the water and the white structure built to honor those killed on the Arizona.

--GreGen

USS Arizona Survivor Lou Conter is 101-- Part 2

On Wednesday, December 7, the U.S. Navy and the National Park service will host a remembrance ceremony at Pearl Harbor in honor of those killed.

Last year about 30 survivors and some 100 other veterans of the war made the pilgrimage to the annual event.  But, they only anticipate one or two survivors will likely attend this year's event in person.  Another  20-30 veterans of World War II are also expected to be there.

Lou Conter won't be among them, however.  He attended for many years, most recently in 2019.  But his doctor has told him the five-hour flight, plus hours of waiting in airports, is too strenuous for him now.

"I'm going to be 102 now.  It's kind of hard to mess around,"  Conter said.

Instead, he plans to watch a video feed of this year's 81st anniversary observance from home.  He's also recorded a message that will be played for those attending.

--GreGen

80 Years On, the Told and Untold Stories of Pearl Harbor-- Part 1

The December 4, 2021, Sun Sentinel  by George W. Rhodes.

"It's 80 years on and they're almost gone."

According to a National Park Service news release earlier this month,  150  veterans of World War II, including 40 who were there at Pearl Harbor that day in 1941, will be attending the annual day of remembrance in Pearl Harbor tomorrow.

If not 100 years old, Pearl Harbor survivors are near it.  Those who were 20 years old back then are now 100.  Some were younger, some older.

Those 40 sure have some stories to tell about that day and some have told them.

--GreGen

Pearl Harbor Remembrance May Be Mainly Virtual This Year

From the November 14, 2020,  The Garden Island, Hawaii. 

On December 7, the National Park Service and U.S. Navy will host the 79th National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day to honor the 2,390 American lives lost that day when it was attacked in 1941. 

The ceremony will begin at 7:50 when a very small number of veterans and speakers  will be at  the Pearl Harbor National Memorial's Contemplation Circle with the keynote speech given by Admiral John Aquilino, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Most of the ceremony will take place virtually.

A moment of silence will be observed at 7:55, the exact moment of the Japanese attack.

--GreGen

The USS Arizona's Oil Leak-- Part 3: "The Black Tears of the Arizona"

Some historians have called the leaking oil "The Black Tears of the Arizona." and the NPS says that oil has a moving effect on the some 1.7 million visitors each year to the memorial.

When they see the oil float to the top of the water they are smelling  and seeing history.  It is like a time machine taking you back to that date, December 7, 1941.

A lot of oil is trapped  in then hull or fuel tanks that are  lodged deep into the muddy water of the harbor floor, making fuel removal expensive and difficult.  "We don't know if the oil is creating pressure in the tanks that's helping the structural integrity of the ship," said the National Park Service's (NPS) Bojakowski.

Removing the oil could disturb artifacts, the bodies aboard the ship or the urns of survivors now interned aboard her.    Other battleships that were sunk or seriously damaged in the attack have been removed.  The USS Arizona and USS Utah were so badly damaged it was decided to leave them where they were.  Parts of the ships were salvaged (including the guns) and in the 1960s, several tons of the Arizona were cut away.

There is a film segment with the article showing the "Black Tears of the Arizona" as well as a picture of a seahorse on the ship.

--GreGen

The USS Arizona's Oil Leak: Is It an Environmental Concern?-- Part 1: 14,000 to 64,00 Gallons of Oil

From the February 24, 2020, Honolulu Civil Beat "Oil constantly leaks from the USS Arizona.   Is that an environmental problem? by Claire Caulfield.

An audio tour of Pearl Harbor narrated by actress Jaime Lee Curtis, instructs visitors to the USS Arizona Memorial not to throw coins into the water around the shipwreck because they harm the environment.

But nothing is said about the estimated half gallon of oil that leaks out of the ship every day.

A federal report says this oil is particularly toxic and there is concern for marine life in the harbor.  But, even so, there are no plans to stop the leak.

During the December 7, 1941, attack, all eight battleships in the harbor were hit by torpedoes and bombs, spilling thousands of gallons of oil into the harbor.  The Arizona had just been topped off with bunker oil the day before and burned for two days afterwards.

It is believed that between 14,000 and 64,000 gallons of oil have leaked out of the USS Arizona since the attack and the NPS estimates it could continue to leak for another 500 years.

--GreGen

Repairs to USS Arizona Memorial Dock Delayed

From the February 28, 2019, U.S. News & World Report.

Officials are now saying that public access to the memorial will not be restored in March as had been expected.  The National Park Service suspended trips to the memorial in early May after  damage was found to the floating dock by which visitors leave the tour boat to go to the memorial.

It is expected that a contract for the repairs will be awarded in March.  In the meantime, harbor tours will pass near the memorial.

--GreGen

Fort Wood in New York Harbor During WW II

I have been writing about this fort in my Not So Forgotten: War of 1812 blog.  Today, Fort Wood is the base of the Statue of Liberty.

From FortWiki.

After WW I,  troops from it guarded and patrolled New York Harbor.  In 1924, the Statue of Liberty and Fort Wood were declared a National Monument and in 1933 they were transferred to the National Park Service.

The U.S. Army abandoned the post in 1937.

During World War II, the Coast Guard maintained an observation station on the old Fort Wood  statue base and after the war, the remaining military buildings were torn down.

--GreGen

Fort McHenry, Baltimore, During World War II

From Wikipedia.

I have been writing a whole lot about this fort in my Not So Forgotten War of 1812 blog.  Of course, this is "The Rockets Red Glare" fort.

The fort became a national park in 1929 and in 1939 was redesignated "National Monument and Historic Shrine.A national tradition now has the first time a new American flag flies, it does so at Fort McHenry.  The first 49-star and 50-star flags flew here and are still located on the premises.

During World War II, Fort McHenry was a Coast Guard base for training and for fire control and port defense.

--HreHen

USS Arizona Memorial To Be Closed Two More Days

From the June 24, 2016, Daily Journal "The National Park Service says the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor will be closed to visitors for an extra two days while the dock is replaced."

The new dock would not be finished on Sunday as planned, but hopefully by Tuesday.  In the meantime, visitors to the site will be taken by boat close by to view it, but no one will be allowed to go on it.

It is expected to reopen on Wednesday.

I Sure Would Hate to Go All the Way There and Not See This One "Must See" Thing for Me in Hawaii.  --GreGen

USS Arizona Tour Draws Multitudes to Pearl Harbor

From the Dec. 18, 2013, Stars and Stripes "USS Arizona Memorial tour draws respectful multitudes to Pearl Harbor" by Terry Richard.

The National Park Service does a magnificent job handling and keeping crowds coming to the memorial respectful.  It draws over a million visitors a year.

Lines form at 7 a.m. and persons get a free timed ticket.  After which they tour the Arizona museum located on the grounds and then, when their time arrives, they take a five minute trip to the sunken ship.  Two launches are used and leave every 75 minutes.

--GreGen