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Battle of Okinawa Memorial Held 70 Years After Kamikaze Attack on USS Laffey

Molly Hamilton Apr 21, 2015

On Thursday, April 16, 2015, seven World War II veterans who served in the Okinawa campaign assembled on the fantail of the USS Yorktown overlooking the USS Laffey to remember their brothers who gave the ultimate sacrifice during the Battle of Okinawa.  From April 1 to June 22, 1945, more than 12,000 American lives were lost in the battle that ultimately proved to be a victory for the Allied forces, and was the last and largest battle in the Pacific theater.  Over these 82 days, Allied Forces struggled with the Japanese for control of air bases vital to the plan to invade Japan.

Both the USS Yorktown and the USS Laffey served at Okinawa, and it was there that the Laffey was attacked by 22 kamikaze aircraft on April 16, 1945, killing 32 men.  It was the fiercest attack ever survived by a U.S. Navy vessel and for her valor, the ship was awarded the Presidential Citation and earned the moniker, “The Ship That Would Not Die.”

Arnold Goldberger was 18 years old when he was serving on the USS Laffey on that day 70 years ago.  He was down below decks when he began to feel the ship rocking violently and then the lights went out.  When he tried to come above deck to see what was going on, all he could see was fire.  He came to the memorial on Thursday to remember those who fought so courageously onboard his ship.

The USS Laffey was not the only ship to have been heavily damaged during the Battle of Okinawa.  A total of 368 ships were damaged during this time and another 34 were sunk.  One of the sunken ships was the USS Mannert Abele and two survivors were at the memorial: David Thomason of Fountain Inn, SC and Gordon Chambers of Anderson, SC.  These men recalled the day the ship was attacked by more than 15 kamikazes with one landing on the ship before it was struck by a baka bomb that split the vessel in two.  The ship sank rapidly and 73 sailors were killed.  Thomason and Chambers floated for hours in the East China Sea amidst fuel and sharks.  They came to the memorial to remember those who did not survive.

The USS Lindsey DM-32 was severely damaged by two kamikaze planes that crashed into her killing 57 sailors and wounding another 57.  Brian Rowell of Mt. Pleasant, SC represented his ship at the memorial and tossed a wreath into the waters in memory of his fallen brothers.

In addition to the losses in the water, the 12,000 men killed included ground forces and air forces.   Dick Whitaker of Mt. Pleasant, SC took part in the memorial to remember his brothers in the ground forces who gave their all.  He served in the 6^th Marine Division and tossed a wreath into the water to remember those in his division and others that gave their lives on the ground of Okinawa.

During the battle, 763 aircraft were downed.  Bill Cart was a F4U Corsair pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps and Bill Watkinson was a Hellcat night fighter pilot with the VF-9 onboard the USS Yorktown.  They both now live in the Charleston area and both served at Okinawa. At the memorial, they represented the pilots and crew who served by air at Okinawa.  Like the other WWII veterans, they tossed a wreath into the water to remember the fallen.

Approximately 100 people gathered on this cool, Spring day to remember this important battle in World War II.  After a keynote address by S.C. House Representative James E. Smith, Jr. (grandson of Paul Smith, gunnery officer on the USS Laffey at the Battle of Okinawa), the USS Laffey Association President Sonny Walker talked about our brave veterans that served during this time.  Before the wreaths were laid in memory of those who died, the daughter of David Thomason, Kay Brumbaugh, read poems that Mr. Thomason’s mother had written in honor of him and his brothers while they were serving in World War II.   It was a moving way to end this memorial and remember the service of those who many call our nation’s “Greatest Generation.”

For photos of the event, see below: