quote:
We are shocked and saddened to hear that Edgar Harrell, the last surviving Marine of the USS Indianapolis sinking, has passed away.

Ed was beloved among the group, and traveled the world sharing the story of his ship and shipmates. He joined the crew as a sea-going marine in 1944, meaning he was one of the best of the best. During his time aboard ship, he helped guard components of the atomic bomb. After the torpedoing, he was a hero amongst his shipmates.

Of course, we’ll miss his passionate telling of the rescue story, and how he felt the Lord’s comfort throughout the ordeal. You can learn more about Ed’s story in the book he wrote with his son David, entitled “Out of the Depths”.

With the passing of James Smith earlier this week, and now Edgar, there are only 5 living survivors. Let’s all do what we can to keep their Legacies alive.

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Posted by fr33manator

Baton Rouge

Member since Oct 2010

124193 posts

Posted on 5/11/21 at 9:30 am to Jim Rockford

:salute:

Wrote this about a month back

USS Indianapolis

Indianapolis left,
With near twelve hundred men,
Only three hundred sixteen,
Would come out again,
And so secret was she,
sent no call of distress,
The torpedoes got some,
And the sharks got the rest,

They delivered the bomb,
And in secret returned,
‘Til a Japanese sub,
Their location discerned,
And a pair of torpedoes,
With hardly a sound,
Put a hole in her hull,
In 12 minutes she drowned,

Some unlucky three hundred,
Joined her when she did sink,
Nearly 900 men,
Still remained in the drink,
Oil-coated, they floated,
Out there in the dark,
But when dawn broke upon them,
They saw the first shark,

Floating there in the flotsam,
And then came the screams,
Then the spreading red water,
That would haunt them in dreams,
Doll-eyed bulls, hungry tigers,
Whites and cruel hammerheads,
Bodies bobbed, as asleep,
Bitten in half, we’re dead,

In warm seas of tropics,
The water was clear,
Sailors spied swimming specters,
Of death drawing near,
As the salt and sun burned,
Robbing men of their pallor,
As these beasts had their feast,
Taking six men an hour,

Adrift in the ocean,
No planes, and no birds,
Only sharks by the thousand,
And the screams of two thirds,
But as bad as the day was,
The night was the worst,
Though surrounded by water,
Sailors cried out from thirst,

It was nearly 4 days,
Until rescue would come,
Men were begging for death,
Wishes granted for some,
Dying words from the wounded,
Vests unstrapped from the dead,
All while unblinking monsters,
Would grow fat and well fed,

With near twelve hundred men,
That doomed ship had set out,
Only three hundred sixteen,
Would still be about,
Of that secret ship’s sailors,
Were near nine hundred less,
The cruel sea claimed the lucky,
And the sharks got the rest.

This post was edited on 5/11/21 at 10:07 am

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Posted by The Boat

Member since Oct 2008

164137 posts

Posted on 5/11/21 at 9:31 am to Jim Rockford

Gonna be crazy when there's no more WWII vets alive

By the next Presidential election there might be less than 100,000 US WWII vets alive

This post was edited on 5/11/21 at 9:34 am

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Posted by jlovel7

Louisiana

Member since Aug 2014

21309 posts

Posted on 5/11/21 at 9:35 am to The Boat

I wish the children of today could meet with and talk to these veterans. People who lived through the depression and braved horrible journeys across two oceans to fight real tyranny.

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Posted by White Roach

Member since Apr 2009

9454 posts

Posted on 5/11/21 at 9:57 am to jlovel7

The WWII Museum has WWII vets a couple of days a week. My ex-neighbor's father is 98 years old and a B-24 pilot. His speaking engagements were put on hold by COVID, but he's ready to go again.
It's great to see younger people interested and showing respect to a man who earned it.

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Posted by Bankshot