December 7, 1941: A Personal Account from Pearl Harbor

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The load alarm rang waking me from my sleep. The clock read 7:45 on December 7, 1941. It was a Sunday, so it was getting ready for church. Today was my day off, which on work days I work on the USS Tennessee as a engineer. My job is to supervise and make sure the engines are running smoothly. I have been been working on her for many months on the Southern side of the Hawaiian island of Oahu. I am stationed at a U.S. naval base named Pearl Harbor. I stepped out of my quarters to admire the ships around me called “Battleship Row.” It contains eight large, powerful battleships. Just ahead of the USS Tennessee is the USS Maryland directly behind is the USS Arizona. The USS Tennessee was a beauty, which is why I loved working on it. The glorious ship has a length of 624 feet and it travels at 21 knots. She was tied to her mooring next to a quay. I was ready to go to church and have a nice relaxing day. …show more content…

I was walking thinking about what I was gonna eat for breakfast when a large dark shadow flies over the ship. Before I can comprehend was going on, a explosion hit the USS Arizona directly behind us. I see many bombs hitting the Arizona and it suddenly becomes engulfed in flames. The ship burns and finally sinks to the floor of the ocean. The men on my ship sat there and tried to understand what had happened. I knew something was not right and I was very scared. I hear Admiral Kimmel, who is in charge of the base, send out a dispatch. He said, “AIR RAID ON PEARL HARBOR X THIS IS NOT A DRILL.” I became full of fear. Then, comes flying in a bomb directly hitting Turret III, and I thought my life was coming to an

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