{"id":16771,"date":"2016-12-07T10:09:21","date_gmt":"2016-12-07T10:09:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=16771"},"modified":"2016-12-07T10:20:50","modified_gmt":"2016-12-07T10:20:50","slug":"survivor-recalls-fear-anger-on-day-of-pearl-harbor-attack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/news\/survivor-recalls-fear-anger-on-day-of-pearl-harbor-attack.html","title":{"rendered":"Survivor recalls fear, anger on day of Pearl Harbor attack"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Survivor recalls fear, anger on day of Pearl Harbor attack<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Survivor recalls fear, anger on day of Pearl Harbor attack:-<\/strong> Surprise, fear, anger and pride overcame Jim Downing as Japanese planes bombed Pearl Harbor.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then a newlywed sailor, he recalled a Japanese plane flying low and slow in his direction as he rushed to his battleship from his home after hearing explosions and learning of the attack on the radio.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen he got the right angle, he banked over, turned his machine guns lose,\u201d Downing, now 103, said in an interview at a Waikiki hotel, \u201cBut fortunately he didn\u2019t bank far enough so it went right over my head.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The next aviator might have better aim, Downing remembers thinking. And with nowhere to hide, \u201cI was afraid,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Downing plans to return to Pearl Harbor Wednesday with a few dozen other survivors to mark the 75th anniversary of the attack that plunged the United States into World War II and left more than 2,300 service people dead.<\/span><\/p>\n

Those who gather at the ceremony on a pier overlooking the harbor are expected to observe a moment of silence at 7:55 a.m. \u2014 the same moment Japanese planes began their assault.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thousands of other servicemen and women and members of the public are expected to attend and watch via a livestream feed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Downing said he comes back to Hawaii for the anniversary commemorations to be with his shipmates.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe get together and have a great time and compare our stories,\u201d said Downing, a resident of Colorado Springs, Colorado.<\/span><\/p>\n

His ship, the USS West Virginia, was hit by nine torpedoes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe were sinking and everything above the water line was on fire,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Downing said he felt proud while watching sailors balance the capsizing ship by allowing water to seep in. The tactic let the giant battleship slide into mud below.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey just instinctively did the right thing at the right time without any thought about their own lives or safety,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The West Virginia lost 106 men. Downing spent two hours fighting fires and checking the name tags of the dead so he could write their families personal notes about how they died.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI thought that would give them more closure that just a cold note, \u2018your son was killed in action,\u2019\u201d said Downing, who also served as the ship\u2019s postmaster.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ray Chavez was out on a minesweeper, the USS Condor, in the early hours before the attack. He remembers noticing with his shipmates that a mysterious submarine was lurking off the harbor.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAt 3:45 a.m. on Dec. 7, I look out and spotted a submarine that wasn\u2019t supposed to be in that area,\u201d the 104-year-old Chavez said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The sailors reported the sighting and Chavez went home to sleep. He told his wife not to wake him because he hadn\u2019t gotten any rest during the busy night.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt seemed like I only slept about 10 minutes when she called me and said \u2018we\u2019re being attacked.\u2019 And I said \u2018who is going to attack us?\u2019 She said \u2018the Japanese are here and they\u2019re attacking everything,\u2019\u201d Chavez said.<\/span><\/p>\n

These days, many people treat Chavez and other Pearl Harbor survivors like celebrities, asking them for autographs and photos. But Chavez said it\u2019s about the people who were lost.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m honoring them, not myself,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:- https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/national\/survivor-recalls-fear-anger-on-day-of-pearl-harbor-attack\/2016\/12\/07\/c922e04a-bc4e-11e6-ae79-bec72d34f8c9_story.html<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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