NOT A SURPRISE

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIII, Issue 203, 28 August 1942, Page 2

NOT A SURPRISE

DUTCH HARBOUR RAID

HOT RECEPTION OF JAPS.

(0.C.) SAN FRANCISCO, July 1. Mayor J. W. Fletcher, of Unalaska, has written a graphic eye-witness story of the bombing of Dutch Harbour, from his domain, which is comparatively but a stone's throw from Dutch Harbour on that island. ~s to£ y> which was released in beattle by Mayor Fletcher, was as follows: "Days before the attack I had Been informed of the approach °*,. a portion of the Japanese fleet. This information was given in order that I could check up on the preparations necessary for civilian defence in Unalaska. The night of June 2, I had information that a Japanese carrier was within 400 miles of Unalaska Island!

\V e awoke at 5.45 a.m. the morning of June 3 to the sound of unusually heavy anti-aircraft fire. I looked toward the Bering Sea and near the top of a mountain were at least three Japanese Zero fighters.

"From this quick glance the impression was that they had run into heavy anti-aircraft fire unexpectedly. For several days prior to the raid we had had a severe south-east storm. On the morning of June 3 the wind had gone down completely. A dead calm had set in, with clouds at approximately 5000 feet. Calling Mrs. Fletcher to hurry and dress, we immediately proceeded to our prearranged plan of heading for our basement. Disappearing toward the north-west we saw four very large bombers.

"Then, a moment later, from the south-west, approaching Dutch Harbour, came three more. This made a total of at least seven bombers. Their particular objective—Dutch Harbour—is not round, but long and narrow. They approached and let go two bombs each, which later were described as 20001b bombs. Two warehouses were struck and one barracks. Hit No Civilians "There were some casualties, most of which definitely could have been avoided if the men had remembered to lie flat on the ground,. No civilians were hit in Unalaska. Fires immediately broke out where the bombs struck. All this time a heavy barrage of anti-aircraft fire was going on. The sky was filled with bursting shells and puffs of smoke.

I was very much surprised at the enormous size of the planes the Japanese were using in their attack. At the height they were flying, their marksmanship had to be good to hit anything on land.

"At about this time a military patrol informed me that all women and children should proceed to the main highway in the middle of the town, where they would be picked up by trucks and taken to a valley for better protection. My car was at hand, and getting our neighbour, who was ill, her child and another woman, we hastened up the valley selected. On our way up we saw coming down this valley, flying about 300 feet above the road, what we took to be an American-built P-40. Just before it reached us it veered to our left. This ship turned out to be another Jap plane, possibly of the Zero type. Taking the women to a sheltered spot in a ravine, I returned and made several trips. In a short time help arrived in tne form of two more cars, and quickly emptied the town of women, children and sick from the Government hospital in Unalaska.

"The bombing on Dutch Harbour was rather heavy. One bomb made a direct hit on a gun emplacement, killing its entire crew. Most of the white population was evacuated immediately afterward, but most natives remained. My present concern is to see that the rest are taken inland to some safer spot."

How many Jap planes were downed has never been announced officially. Joseph Wynans of Des Moines, Washington, said the fleeing civilians, running toward the ravines, threw themselves on the ground as one Jap plane swooped toward them, and the gunner failed to hit a single one, though his tracer bullets kicked up spurts of dirt and pebbles all around.

"It was the loudest racket I ever heard," said Ivan Tallman, third cook aboard the transport, telling how the transport's crew stood on deck and blazed away at the attackers while gun crews pumped deadly umbrellas of anti-aircraft fire above the harbour."

"Ready For Them"

Survivors told how 5001b bombs dug craters 12 feet deep, and how one, landing ashore, hurled rocks in every direction, one—the size of a man's head—on to a transport's upper deck. "The Japs picked their day," said one of the "walking wounded," who declined to identify himself. "They came down out of broken clouds and were close when we heard them. But we weren't surprised. We were ready for them."

Servicemen aboard the ship were tight-lipped about what damage was done at the Dutch Harbour base, but several said "the damage was light—considering." "Considering what?" interviewers pre. "tid an army corporal. "Considering that no matter how long you've been warned and have been expecting a raid, there's bound to be some surprise when they finally do come over in force," he replied. "No matter how much stuff you toss at them, some of them are bound to get through." Declining to identify himself, he acted as spokesman for half a dozen walking wounded. "It was hot stuff," continued the corporal. "We were credited with knocking down 11 of their planes." A naval official in Seattle said military installations were not surprised. All gun positions were manned, both ashore and on ships anchored in the harbour and at docks, and all available guns opened fire on the Japanese as soon as they arrived within range. All forces afloat and ashore fought to the full extent of their ability and equipment, as many eye-witnesses havetestified in speaking of the wave of anti-aircraft fire which rose to meet the attackers. The narrative accounts bear witness to the bravery and persistence of the defending force.