Pearl Harbor Attacks
December 8, 1941
Information On The Attacks
From approximately 7:55 a.m. to 9:45 a.m., the Japanese launched attacks on Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor is a military base on the south side of the Hawaiian island of Oahu. The attacks occurred on December 7, 1941, which is today. It was a Sunday, so we were relaxed. We were not prepared to defend against the attacks of the Japanese. They attacked twice, first at 7:55, then at about 8:40. The Japanese attacked because it was an effort to wipe out U.S. aircraft carriers. However, the aircraft carriers were out at sea, so they directed their attacks to our naval battleships. The Japanese also launched attacks on our airfields, destroying our planes. I assume that they did so to avoid a counter-attack.
Battleships That Were Attacked
These seven battleships were destroyed at Pearl Harbor. Eight ships that were located here at Pearl Harbor were destroyed. The battleships that were destroyed were the USS Tennessee, the USS West Virginia, the USS Arizona, the USS California, the USS Maryland. the USS Nevada, the USS Shaw and the USS Oklahoma.
Casualties
We suffered great loss because of the attacks. 2,335 U.S. servicemen were killed and 1,143 were wounded duding the attacks. 68 civilians were also killed and 35 civilians were wounded.
Aftermath Of The Attacks
In the aftermath of the attacks, we were nervous. We expected the Japanese to send a third wave of attacks, but another wave never came. The next day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave his famous speech: The Day Of Infamy speech. This rallied the U.S. citizens to come together in the troubling time. This also caused the U.S. to declare war on Japan, putting us into World War II.