POST #22-21
Day Eleven...Iwo Jima Battle Narrative, March 2nd, 1945..
Mikey's Dads 100th Birthday Was 2-22-2022...
We continue the day-by-day story of the First Battalion, 24th Marines, Baker company in the bloody battle of IWO JIMA...
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| Day Eleven...Fear |
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On February 22, 2022, (2-22-22) Mikey's Dad, Willard W. Wemple would have been 100 years old. We are following Dad's time in the First Battalion, 24th Marines, Baker company, from February 19th to March 17th, 1945, in....Operation Detachment.
We will not put very much on these posts about the 1-24 On Iwo Jima, instead we will post links here leading to a very good, detailed website that will give way more information than we can deliver ourselves. We must warn you that some of the information will be graphic and upsetting, but will give you some idea about what Dad and the other Marines experienced. If you see a mention of Baker Company, that is the unit dad was to be assigned to.
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On this day, March 2nd, Willard (Dad) and the 1-24 were on the front line. There was probably no time to process his thoughts and feelings as he moved forward from cover to cover, trying to keep up with his new squad and stay alive. They managed to reach high ground and could see the ugly "Turkey Knob" a hill topped by a concrete blockhouse. This blockhouse contained a critical Japanese communications center and appeared to be impervious to damage. Flamethrowers sprayed over 100 gallons of fuel and 8 Sherman tanks fired dozens of 75MM shells at close range...all with no apparent effect. The blockhouse was built over a network of tunnels, leading to dozens of firing positions and caves. The Japs took cover from attacks in the tunnels and then emerged to open fire from any direction. Dad and the 1-24 endured withering fire. Dad spoke of one time, maybe it was this day, that he felt a tug on his jacket and looked down to see a bullet hole in the jacket. The jacket was unbuttoned and flapping in the wind, the bullet would have been only an inch or two from his chest. It was a horrific day, but the future days would be worse... The narrative for today is detailed, and again graphic...
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TODAYS NARRATIVE
Todays narrative is Day ELEVEN on Iwo Jima, March 2nd, 1945...It will be called Fear...
Click or tap HERE to go to the narrative...It's very interesting
Over the next posts and next days we will continue posting daily updates that will follow the battle through logs and stories of the battle as told by a Military Historian and participants on the 1st Battallion-24th Marines Website...
Until Next Time!!
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