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A small boat rescues a USS West Virginia crew member from the water after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. courtesy photo
Monday, Americans honored the 79th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, in Hawaii. “December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy,” famously proclaimed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
In August 1994, Congress designated Dec. 7 as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. Just before 8 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese planes made the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. During the attack, which was launched from aircraft carriers, approximately 20 American naval vessels, including eight battleships, were damaged or totally destroyed as well as 300 aircraft. The entire attack lasted one hour and 15 minutes.
The official Amercan death toll was 2,403, including 2,008 Navy personnel, 109 Marines, 218 Army service members and 68 civilians. The total number of wounded was 1,143, including 710 Navy, 69 Marines, 364 Army and 103 civilians. Of those that lost their lives, 1,177 were from the USS Arizonia. The wreckage of the Arizonia now serves as the main memorial to Pearl Harbor.
The surprise attack on the major U.S. Navy base near Honolulu was the strike that signaled the entry of the United States into World War II.