THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, September 27, 1995 TAG: 9509270444
SECTION: MILITARY NEWS PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MELISSA GUNDEL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 50 lines
I was wondering if I could get some information about the ship my brother was on. It was the USS O'Brien. I have no information. I do know it was torpedoed in the 1940s. We would appreciate any information.
I answered this question a couple of weeks ago about the O'Brien. However, my information about its whereabouts when it was torpedoed was incorrect.
According to John Simanton, the Navy Museum docent, the ship was not at Pearl Harbor when torpedoed, but was several thousand miles to the southwest operating as a unit of the escort for the aircraft carrier Wasp in support of the Guadalcanal campaign.
The ships of the Wasp group, including the O'Brien, fell victim to the worst torpedo salvo ever launched by any ship, surface or submarine. On Sept. 15, 1942, the Japanese submarine IJMS I-19 fired a salvo of six 21-inch torpedoes at the Wasp. Two of the torpedoes struck the Wasp, causing massive damage and fires.
The Wasp was abandoned 95 minutes later. In the early evening, the submarine Landsdowne DD-486 fired five torpedoes at the Wasp. She was hit with three. Later that evening the Wasp sank. Wasp casualties were 194 personnel.
A third torpedo from the I-19's salvo struck the battleship North Carolina on the port bow outboard of the magazines and forward of the 16-inch gun turrets, putting a hole 32 feet by 15 feet in the ship's side. No explosion or fire occurred but some magazine spaces were flooded.
Five personnel died. The fourth and last torpedo struck the O'Brien in the port bow. Structural collapse occurred resulting in the O'Brien foundering while enroute to Pearl Harbor for repairs.
I would like to know why the Portsmouth commissary doesn't have a deli and a bakery. We are just as important as the people in Norfolk and the other surrounding areas.
According to Denise Gomes, director of Defense Commissary Agency Central Public Affairs, the Defense Commissary Agency tries to provide every authorized customer with a full-service shopping experience.
Unfortunately, the Portsmouth Commissary does not have the room for a deli and bakery. Each year they evaluate their facilities to determine the best allocation of construction and renovation money.
At this time, there are no current plans for a renovation of the commissary in Portsmouth. Delis and bakeries are located at the Norfolk Naval Base, Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base, Oceana Naval Air Station, Langley Air Force Base and Fort Eustis. by CNB