The Daily Alaska empire Newspaper, January 17, 1944, Page 8

PAGE TWO Dméng Land Crash: SEATTLE hip lost Bougainville Ensign Walter J. (Wally) Reid, lared here that he was not one A survivor of the only n the push, de- of but ¥ s of that engagement t one of the lucky ones The real heroes were the gu w down with the shiy wounded who could not be moved the on in another s who went land on the heme and beach after they plesion, fire and hours in the water when our ship sank 1 said It was early morning, and dark when the old destroyer McKean was nearing Empress Augusta Bay to land it's cargo of marine raider _;.la’p torpedd-planes were making run on the convoy, and on was shot down and burning while W (WY Zeptodt Cove Consedoytd More Than 1,000 Killed at Tarawa BACK THE INVASION! BUY WAR BONDS! ' SHATTUCK AGENCY wen-from the Jups in, hord fighflng‘ Ensign Reid stood on the bridge First, I thought, ‘can we put the Another was flying parallel to fire out? the officer explained but we were maneuvering and “Tt g r to that was simply ht he'd missed us” the 27- ‘Hell no. -cld University of Washington Just Tn Movies’ luate recalled Next I Then Torpedo Hit' nz to our ( were firing all around me, We or dreamed Wwe but I .rmlduL see the plane,” Reid locd. Sinking and disasters inued. “The captain jubilantly rt of the movies and not mced ‘he missed us,’ and then that could happen to us. thou h, ‘what’'s happen- This can't happer nythin orpedo hit tern Then cf course the third was snect of flame immediate: I'd better find myself a life pre- all over the ship. Men wel yver.” in heaps by the explosion 1t had been impossible to work everything loose fell over the | wearing a preserver, Reid said, and most of the crew merely had placed Reid wocked down on the their life jackets near them. bridge w e he was protected they were the first from flames ings blown over the side by the “The guys above in the control explosion,” Reid added, “By this tower were burned so badly they time the lifeboats were burning all won the Purple Heart,” the of- and the whole ship was afire. “We servers, all began looking for pre- There was no panic. Those who didn't have one calmly asked where one was. They were very sheepish: They realized they should have had a jacket. “The marines abeard hit the wa- ter, and immediately. were dmmers- ed in burning oil. The of the crew scrambled over, to One of Last Over Side ficer explained. “I picked myself up and looked aft. The ship had already settled in the stern and everything was burning fiercely. Steel went up in flames just cardboard and the men in the m didn’'t have a chance." : flash thoughts immediate- wough his mind, although 't one of them, Reid said. ponsoered by the INSURARCE-BONDS DEAIH FROM SKIES—Ambri:un bombs smash Axi Reid, as an officer, was.qne of he last cr fs i “Heck, T asked the captain’s per- mission to get off,” bered. proc Reid remem- “I didn't know the proper ure for abandoning ship. I red myself over the side with ngling antenna. “i was afraid I'd get iy head wet if T jumped over,” Reid added. 1 d “We had to swim upwind, away irgm the burning oil. But were covered with lubricating oil | atl of us @ot at least our first el shampoo.’ 2% “The next hour and a half we swam around in the dark andithe noise. The next ship couldn$ res cue us because it would be etted by our glare. We % hand in cireles, to held e up. “That was the remark about the whole incident. mfhny everybody helped each other.: « “Guys whuld give up preservers, saying “I'm I use it for awhile’ Others WWould find debris to hold up theif® pals Two men near me were hanging onto a coiled fire hose. Wa, nz _sones, like the ‘Beer Barre f "that everyone knew. We. e know when we'd ever be rescued. JUNEAU it argelsi’ Greek Sailor Prayed the Jap torpedo-plane pilot for a ‘perfect, piece of flying,’ said he'd like to give every one of us a ci- life rafts we managed to floating with the badly nded aboard. We could hear one tation but everyone was so k sailor saying a prayer in | helpful no individual stood out.” his native tongue. The others didn't Reid is the son of John H. Reid, know the language and answered publisher of The University Her- with “The Lor¢ Prayer.’ ald, and Mrs. Reid. He enlisted in “Finally at dawn a ship similar|the Navy in 1841 and went over- to ours atched its shore boats seas last April. His next assignment, and they scooped he hopes, will be on a new destroy- “Then we went on to Bougain- €I, not like the “four-stacked de- ville with that load. And all the stroyer-transport converted from the marines who'd been on our ship First World War” which he saw go and who weren't injured so they down. couldn't move, went right on in e .-~ the waves of landing parties. America’s first transcontinental S‘We were fully proud of our raliway was built in Panama, span- w. The captain, who also praised ning the 50-mile isthmus MONDAY JANUARY I7 |94 in the next 90 days woul | more than triple the total for twp years of war. "hat would push the . total ¢f dead, wounded, missing and prison- ers now around 132,000, well past [ [] ! If: triDie LR R A d the half-million mark. The forecast appeared to con- In % q template a full-scale assault on 2 the European Continent within a b matter of weeks and perhaps ad- e ditional smashes at Japanese WASHINGTON—Hinting at of- Strongholds in the Pacific. fensives far mightier and bloodier S e o et than any yet under-taken by Anglo- A hurricane does not become a hurricane in weather bureau term- inology until its wind velocity rises above 75 miles an hour. American arms, one of the nent’s highest executives predi t American ed battle casu- JUNEA@ B} Fourth War Loan Drive Thiswarisn'toverbya darnsight. Ii'sonly the beginning. Sure, we're | dongprefiygood W But We'd Be Doing a He?l of a Lot Better f We Had More Planes, More Tanks, and More You can help pay for these, help send them to the men going over the top by doing your part in the Fourth War Loan Drive. Buy thai Bond HOW! this message for Victory sponsored by the JUNEAU LUMBER MILLS verine DJOUGLAS