THIS DAY IN HISTORY

A Day Of Infamy and Horror

December 7, 1941 Attack on Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor, with the battleship USS Missouri and the memorial for the USS Arizona. Photo by author.

It was a normal Sunday morning in the harbor near Honolulu on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Navy shipman, supply specialists, and airman were eating breakfast. Suddenly they heard a buzzing from overhead. Within minutes the US fleet was being attacked by Japanese fighter planes resulting in 20 American ships and more than 300 airplanes being destroyed.

This devastating sneak attack lasted just about two hours and ushered the United States into World War II. Over 2,403 US personnel died in the attack, including civilians, as the Japanese airmen would shoot at anything that moved. Over 1,178 were injured, including many who were badly burned when Pearl Harbor’s crystal blue water became an inferno of oil and gas.

The beautiful Pearl Harbor seen in 2024. Photo by author.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan, which was passed on December 8.

The events leading up to this horrendous attack on the American fleet were many. The rise of fascism in Europe and militarism of Japan were two of the causes of World War II. In September of…