October 20, 1942 - Tuesday - 80 years ago today

 Status - John Skinner - USS O'Brien: 

On the 18th, problems worsened all day, and by the afternoon, the crew was informed of the possible need to abandon ship and that preparations had been made.  Course was set for Pago Pago, the nearest port, with the emergency destination of the island of Upolu, Western Samoa. 

Overnight the flooding became worse, and by morning, the ship had more severe damage, as cracks had formed in several areas.  The bottom opened up at 6:00 AM, and the deck began to rupture about a half hour later, at which point the order to abandon ship was given.  The crew spent several hours in lifeboats and in the water.  Many had to swim to the accompanying vessels.  The sharks having business elsewhere that day, all hands were rescued.

Around 8:00 AM, the end came for O'Brien.  Below are pictures of the sinking, as the bow and stern folded upwards but did not separate, and the ship sank slowly as one unit, still held together by the main deck.

Photo 6: At 0645, 19 October, 1942. Note permanent upward set of bow.

Photo 7: At 0750, 19 October, 1942. Heavy list to starboard. Breaking up process well advanced.

Photo 8: At 0755-1/2, 19 October, 1942. Bow and stern sharply inclined.

Photo 9: At 0957, 19 October, 1942. Bow and stern apparently held together by main deck, piping and wiring. By 0758 O'BRIEN had disappeared.

 Click Read More to see the full narration of the last day from Damage Report #28, pp. 6-8:

October 16, 1942 - Friday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS O'Brien: 

O'Brien, with its escorts Cimmaron and Lang, reached Suva, Fiji on the 13th, and had only a broken plate as damage since being repaired at Noumea.  After repairs the ships left on the 16th toward American Samoa and then on to the West Coast.  There were two October 16ths, as the date line was crossed at midnight on the 16th and date was backed up a day.  Water leakage was increasing on O'Brien but was not yet considered serious.  War Damage Report #28 narration:

Task Group 66.3 arrived at Suva on 13 October. While there, damage and previous repairs to O'BRIEN were thoroughly inspected. Except for the broken plate on No. 6 port longitudinal no other evidence of failure or weakness in the repairs previously made was discovered. The broken plate was repaired by welding an angle to it, apparently along the top.

Departure from Suva was made about 1430 on 16 October. Shortly after departure and when in the open sea, rate of leakage again increased but not alarmingly so as one fire and bilge pump was more than adequate to control the leakage. Wind and sea were still very moderate.

At 0000, zone minus 12, October 17, the date was changed due to crossing the international date line and the 16th was repeated.

 Bombardment of Guadalcanal

The Marines were heavily bombarded for three consecutive nights, the first night Japanese battleships fired 14 inch shells into the airfield and surroundings.  Japanese heavy cruisers did more damage the second night.  The US Navy was unable to counter these attacks, and the Marines have not forgotten even to this day.  Most of the planes at the field were damaged or destroyed and the Japanese also landed several thousand more troops on the island.  This appeared to be another big Japanese offensive to push the Marines off the island.

U. S. Navy Task Forces:

• Task Force 16 (Enterprise) sailed from Pearl Harbor on October 16th for the South Pacific.
  
• Saratoga remained at Pearl Harbor for repairs (sailed November 10th).
  
• Combined Task Force 61 remained on patrol in the Coral Sea near Guadalcanal.
  
• Task Force 17 (Hornet) -> TF 61 
  

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 262-264.
  
•  The First Team and the Guadalcanal Campaign,  John B. Lundstrom, pp 298-321.
• The Struggle for Guadalcanal, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 172-182.
• Neptune's Inferno, The U.S. Navy at Guadalcanal, James D. Hornfischer, pp. 191-199.
• U.S.S. O'Brien (DD415) Torpedo Damage and Loss South Pacific 15 Sept. - 19 Oct. 1942, War Damage Report #28, pp. 1-6
  

 

NEXT POST: OCTOBER 20TH

October 12, 1942 - Monday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS O'Brien: 

O'Brien's repairs were completed on October 10th.  Unnecessary weight was removed from the ship.  O'Brien and its two escorts left Noumea on the 10th headed for Mare Island in the San Francisco bay area.

"In addition to structural repairs, O'BRIEN was further lightened while at WHITE POPPY by removing 11 torpedoes, 12,000 rounds of 20mm ammunition, eight 300-lb. depth charges, all SC radar equipment and the computer.

"Upon completion of repairs at WHITE POPPY, O'BRIEN was considered capable of making 15 knots in a moderate sea. Mare Island was accordingly designated as the repair yard. At 0800 on 10 October O'BRIEN departed WHITE POPPY in company with CIMARRON and LANG. The group was designated as Task Group 66.3 with the Commanding Officer of CIMARRON as Commander of the Task Group."

-- War Damage Report #28. 

The sailors onboard were not so confident that these orders were a good idea.  As John told me later, anyone could see there was no way that was going to hold up long enough to get back.  These sentiments were no doubt expressed in saltier language when the orders came to make for the West Coast.  The Navy, however, thought all had been done that could be done, and they would just have to chance it; in the forward areas there were no dry docks or sophisticated repair facilities.

Pearl Harbor was closer than the West Coast, but with two carriers in for repairs, it may not have been able to accommodate more ships.   

Cimarron, an oiler headed back to the West Coast for refurbishment, and Lang, a destroyer were the escorts for O'Brien.  The first destination was Suva, Fiji.  

"Upon completion of repairs at WHITE POPPY, O'BRIEN was considered capable of making 15 knots in a moderate sea. Mare Island was accordingly designated as the repair yard. At 0800 on 10 October O'BRIEN departed WHITE POPPY in company with CIMARRON and LANG. The group was designated as Task Group 66.3 with the Commanding Officer of CIMARRON as Commander of the Task Group.

"After getting underway, a slow increase in the rate of leakage into the forward engine room was observed. This was not considered abnormal because of the many small patches and loose rivets in the underwater body. The Commanding Officer reported that a thorough check of the deflection across the damaged area showed that bending there was almost exactly the same as that across a similar undamaged length in the after engine room. Just how these observations were made was not reported, but ordinarily the problem of obtaining reliable hull deflection readings at sea is a difficult one. On the morning of the 13th of October, just prior to arrival at Suva, the reinforcing plate on No. 6 port deep longitudinal was found cracked, indicating a tensile failure. This 860 mile passage was made with turns for 13 knots attaining a speed over the ground of 12 knots. Wind and sea did not exceed moderate intensity."

-- War Damage Report #28.

 Some defects were showing up as noted, but Suva was reached on the 13th. Here is a map of the area, Noumea on the left, Fiji on the right.  Espiritu Santo (modern day Vanuatu), where the initial repairs were made, appears at the top left.:

 

Battle of Cape Esperance

On the night of October 11-12, a Navy cruiser force caught by surprise a Japanese cruiser force sent toward Guadalcanal to escort troop transports and shell the Marine positions.  Unlike earlier night actions, the US cruisers and destroyer found success, as a Japanese heavy cruiser and a destroyer were sunk, with a loss of one US destroyer.  This bolstered the confidence of the sailors, and was publicized at home as a victory, but did little to change the overall situation.

The Japanese transports delivered their troops and equipment to Guadalcanal, as the Japanese army forces there planned another assault on the Marines.

 

U. S. Navy Task Forces:

• Task Force 16 (Enterprise) was at Pearl Harbor, for repairs to Enterprise (sailed October 16th).
  
• Saratoga was at Pearl Harbor for repairs (sailed November 10th).
  
• Combined Task Force 61 remained on patrol in the Coral Sea near Guadalcanal.
  
• Task Force 17 (Hornet) -> TF 61 
  

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 262-263.
  
•  The First Team and the Guadalcanal Campaign,  John B. Lundstrom, pp 289-298.
• The Struggle for Guadalcanal, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 144-172.
• Neptune's Inferno, The U.S. Navy at Guadalcanal, James D. Hornfischer, pp. 157-188.
• U.S.S. O'Brien (DD415) Torpedo Damage and Loss South Pacific 15 Sept. - 19 Oct. 1942, War Damage Report #28, pp. 1-6
  

 

NEXT POST: OCTOBER 16TH