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CHAPTER SIX
"THE JAPANESE MINE BLAST"
After the major invasions of Peleliu and Angar,
the 396 also provided rocket fire support for the US Army and Marines in three other island invasions in the Palau Islands
chain. These three other invasions were dangerous and difficult, but certainly not as tough as Peleliu and Angar.
After the US forces took complete control of Peleliu and Angaur, the 396 cruised ( performed "Picket Duty") in the other
islands in the Palau Island chain for of a couple of months, helping out where needed. They were on call to help out any way
they could.
On one occasion, the 396 was assigned reconnaissance duty to cruise up a narrow fresh water island
river with their flat-bottom 396 for three miles into the jungle. Everyone had an uneasy feeling during the river-run. It
felt like you were being looked at by someone. Monkeys and exotic parrots everywhere...but no Japanese troops were spotted.
By mid-January of 1945, the enemy was pushed farther and farther north in the Palau Island chain. The Captain
of the 396 was John Piel. The XO for the 396 was William B. Townsend. Everybody liked Townsend. Piel was an outstanding fighting
Captain and the crew of the 396 was well known as one of the very best. When the Navy decided to establish a new patrol line
duty in the Palau Island chain, Captain Piel was the first to volunteer the 396 for this dangerous duty.
Two very
dangerous aspects of the 396's patrol line duty were the "Shinyo"and the "Fukuryu". "Shinyo" is a Japanese suicide motorboat
with explosives in the bow typically stored in caves near the water. The motorboats would ram an LCI (G). [ The LCI (G) 365
and LCI (G) 82 were both sunk by the Shinyo.] "Fukuryu" is an Japanese suicide swimmer/human mine who would carry an explosive
charge beneath a ship. [ The LCI (G) 404 was badly damaged by the Fukuryu.]
The 396 during this time also participated
in defending against at least three Kamikaze attacks. One of Sanders' other duties on the 396 was to maintain and charge the
smoke generator on the stern of the ship that would quickly roll-out the huge billows of smoke to protect larger US ships
(as well as the 396) from Kamikazes. Sanders' friend, Floyd Travis, was the ship's Helmsman (steering/controlling the direction
of the ship) and was responsible for observation and reporting of possible incoming threats/targets for the 396. The highly
selective Helmsman job required someone to be calm, cool, and collected.
The 396, on patrol line duty, would often
draw Japanese gun fire from the shore. Of course, the Japanese magnetic water mine was always a serious threat to the 396,
as it was doing patrol duty.
At the request of Captain John Piel, church services were held on board the 396 for
its sailors every day at noon. Yes...everyday. Not just Sundays. While performing its assigned patrol line duty, the 396 hit
the Japanese mine.
I started out this (condensed) version of the story, at the top of this page, by describing
the terrible Japanese mine blast on January 18, 1945. [January 18, 1945 was also that dark day in history when the infamous
Auschwitz 66,000 prisoner "Death March" started during which about 15,000 Auschwitz prisoners died on the Nazi-forced march
to Wodzislaw.]
The Japanese mine blast on January 18, 1945 is certainly the most important part of the story.
It needed to be told first, so that every thing else could be understood in the perspective of that near death experience.
It was a searing moment in Sanders' mind. Sanders does not know how he survived. Why did Bobby Ozbirn and Norris Sells die,
and Sanders live? I guess the Lord had some more stuff for Sanders to do.
CHAPTER SEVEN
"ISLAND RUNNERS"
For the next few months during the remainder of the Winter of 1945 after the Japanese mine blast, Sanders became a "jack
of all trades" (so to speak). Sanders had now been promoted to Seaman 2nd Class.
He did a lot of water barge operation
in the Palau Islands area running back and forth along the 40 mile stretch from Angaur Island in the south to Koror Island
in the north. He slept on a cot in the water barge.
Occasionally, he would get to sleep on what was left of the
396 when he was in the Urukthapel Island area where the 396 was anchored. [ At this point the 396 was designated as the "IX-212"
(an unclassified vessel) on February 23, 1945].
Sanders, at times, periodically served as a baker and cook on
some of the LCIs. One night Sanders and another sailor cooked 19 peach pies for the crew of an LCI. That made Sanders and
his buddy very popular. They cooked a lot of apple and cherry pies later on. Sanders became pretty well liked for his bread
making too since fresh bread was quite rare.
He would occasionally give those famous "Navy Haircuts" to some of
the other sailors. Sanders had no barber training...so he would just..."learn as you go".
After being selected
by the Navy, Sanders and Electrician's Mate 2rd Class Ashley dismantled a radar unit on one of the LCIs and reinstalled it
on another LCI. Neither Ashley or Sanders knew anything about radars until they did it. Life is a dance...you learn as you
go. The Navy flew the Radar vendor's technical expert in from the States to inspect the work that Sanders and Ashley did.
The expert was quite impressed with the turn-key job performed by Sanders and Ashley.
Ashley turned-out to be
a good electricity/electronics mentor for Sanders. Ashley was regarded as the top electrician and electronics sailor in the
Palau Islands area.
Sanders, at times, delivered the mail to the ships. This was an important job. Mail was extremely
important to the morale of the sailors.
The original LCI 396 string band would occasionally get together for a
jam session when they were all in the same proximity in the Palau's. It did not happen often, but when it did it was great.
On several occasions, Sanders improvised some make-shift diving gear and did some underwater ship repairs. This would
certainly be considered as unsafe by today's standards. But, it had to be done with the resources available.
In
March 10, 1944 Sanders was awarded the Purple Heart by Captain Piel on board of what was left of the 396. The ceremony brought
back many memories of the mine blast. After Sanders received the Purple Heart, he could then tell his family and Wilda about
the mine blast, since it was no longer classified information. Sanders' friend, Charles ("Charlie") R. Evans had earlier attempted
to let his wife Martha know about the mine blast in a cryptic manner by stating in one of his letters to Martha (right after
the mine blast) that Charlie had... "lost his wallet and his shoes". Martha did not realize what Charlie was trying to say
in his cryptic letter until some of her family members told her that Charlie's ship (396) must have been hit...but that Charlie
was apparently OK.
On April 15, 1944 Sanders attended a traveling USO Show featuring the World Champ boxer Jack
Dempsey. The USO did a great job in keeping the spirits high.
Then it finally happened. Sanders got orders to
return to the USA in the Spring of 1945. Sanders flew to New Guinea, to Midway Island, and then to Hawaii. From Hawaii he
caught a ship to San Diego. On March 21, 1946 (about eight months after Sanders left the Pacific), what was left of the 396
(now the "IX 212") was hauled off shore of the Palau's and sunk.
CHAPTER EIGHT
"BACK TO
THE GOOD OLD USA!"
Once Sanders made it back to San Diego, he went on a thirty day leave to Oklahoma to see his
family...and, of course, his girl friend Wilda. He also used this occasion to deliver the last personal possessions of his
buddy Bobby Ozbirn to Bobby's parents in Oklahoma.
After the thirty day leave, he was stationed in Portsmouth/Norfolk,
Virginia and worked on Navy diesel electric tug boat number 226 for about seven months escorting big Navy ships daily in and
out of the James River harbor. He slept on the tug boat.
Ashley was also assigned to the Portsmouth/Norfolk area
too. Ashley, by this time, was widely known as a "real" Navy electrical and electronics expert. Sanders and Ashley, at that
time, were considering opening up an electronics repair company after the war.
Also, Sanders had become very well
versed on the principles and application of electricity and electronics, as a result of the South Pacific OJT, mentoring by
Electrician 3rd Class Ashley, and self study for the US Navy Eddy electricity/electronics) Test. (By the way, before he left
the Pacific, he made a 3.76 out of 4.0 on the Eddy Test -- one of the best scores in the Navy, at that time).
Sanders
had become quite an expert on diesel engines by this time. So, Seaman 2nd Class Sanders operated as the engine room engineer
on the 5 crew-member tug boat number 226.
Sanders was stationed in Virginia on VE Day (May 8, 1945), the Hiroshima
atomic bomb drop (August 6, 1945), Nagasaki atomic bomb drop (August 9, 1945), and VJ Day (August 15, 1945). Sanders went
on liberty with Ashley in Virginia on both VE Day and VJ Day. Sanders and Ashley lost track of each other after the war. Sanders
always wondered what Ashley did after the war. Ashley was a fine friend. They don't come any better.
CHAPTER NINE
"I DO"
When Sanders ask Wilda to marry him, she
said... "yes".
During the entire period when Sanders was away from Wilda in the Navy, Wilda wrote letters to Sanders
almost every day. Sanders wrote Wilda whenever he could. That was a lot of letters. No email...just snail-mail. Now, the letter
writing was over.
Much to her mother's concern, Wilda took a train from Waurika to Kansas City where she changed
trains for Cincinnati. [Wilda's mother thought she may never see Wilda again, so she hurriedly had a family photo made before
Wilda left, in case Wilda did not return. In Cincinnati Wilda got on a train to Virginia where Sanders would meet her. She
followed Sanders' savvy advice on how to get a seat on the crowded outgoing trains by tipping the train station "Red Hats"
with a quarter. In those days traveling troops had seating priority on all trains.
Upon arrival, they were married
on December 18, 1945. Wilda was now a... "Navy"...wife.
Sanders, toward the end of his Navy service, transferred
off the diesel electric tug boat 226 and was assigned to numerous pure diesel tugs in the area. The pure diesels were a different
breed of tug boat, but Sanders' experience was really useful in assisting those pure diesel crews.
Wilda and Sanders
made some life-long friends when they lived in Virginia that they still keep-up with today. Despite the Virginia friendships,
Wilda and Sanders could not wait to get back to Oklahoma.
CHAPTER 10
"AM I A CIVILIAN NOW?"
May 17, 1946 was a very important day in US military history,
since it was the date of the first flight of the first US jet bomber - the "Douglas XB-43". Also of great importance on May
17, 1946 is the fact that "Sanders" became "Franklin" (or "Clarence", if you choose,) again when he was honorably discharged
from the US Navy as a "Purple Heart" awardee. He did his part to help the USA win the war.
He returned to Oklahoma.
Clarence was now a civilian. He had learned a lot in those two years and five months in the Navy. Harvard could not have provided
him a finer education. Also, he now had a wife. Clarence and Wilda were anxious to get on with the living of the rest of their
lives together.
________________________ CHAPTER 11 "HEAVEN
BOUND" Clarence Franklin
Sanders went to his glorious Lord Jesus Christ December 1, 2006. He has found new strength to fly high on wings like eagles.
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