Battle Of Kula Gulf Continues, W/ Video

TUE 6 JUL 1943
Pacific

USS Helena (CL-50) Survivors & Night Action, Battle Of Kula Gulf

Battle of Kula Gulf occurs in the pre-dawn darkness as three light cruisers and four destroyers of TG 36.1 (Rear Admiral Walden L. Ainsworth) engage a Japanese reinforcement force of seven destroyers (Rear Admiral Akiyama Teruo), four of which (Amagiri, Hatsuyuki, Nagatsuki and Satsuki) are carrying troops and supplies to Kolombangara, Solomons. Light cruiser Helena (CL-50) is sunk by Japanese destroyers Suzukaze and Tanikaze 07°46'S, 157°11'E, but Japanese destroyer Niizuki is sunk by gunfire of a "Brooklyn-class light cruiser" (what is most likely light cruiser Honolulu (CL-48)), 07°50'S, 157°15'E, and Nagatsuki, damaged by gunfire, is grounded and abandoned on the southeastern coast of Kolombangara; what is gunfire from most likely St. Louis (CL-49) and Honolulu damages destroyer Sukukaze; gunfire damages Amagiri; gunfire from Honolulu and what is likely destroyers Nicholas (DD-449) and O'Bannon (DD- 450) damage Hatsuyuki; Tanikaze is hit by a dud shell.

Night Action, Battle Of Kula Gulf; USS Honolulu (CL-48) Damage Control, Tulagi Harbor, 07/16/1943

In the wake of the battle, while engaged in rescuing some of Helena's survivors, Nicholas and Radford (DD-446) engage Amagiri and Hatsuyuki, damaging both. Still later, SBDs, TBFs, and F4Fs bomb the beached Nagatsuki (see 10 July 1943).

Three heavy cruisers, one light cruiser, and four destroyers of TG 16.7 (Rear Admiral Robert C. Giffen) bombards Kiska, Aleutians. American ships draw no return fire.

Submarine Gurnard (SS-254) is damaged by aerial bombs and depth charges off Palau, 07°33'N, 134°26'E, but remains on patrol.

Submarine Permit (SS-178) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship No.33 Banshu Maru, 43°35'N, 140°21'E.

PB4Y-1 (VB 102) attacks Japanese installations at Greenwich Island, but during the daring, low-level operation the plane is shot down by defending PETEs (902nd Kokutai). Nevertheless, for his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity" displayed in this attack, the PB4Y's commander, Lieutenant Commander Bruce A. Van Voorhis, is awarded a Medal of Honor, posthumously.

Indian Ocean
U.S. freighter Alcoa Prospector, torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-27 the day before, is reboarded by the crew as RINS Bengal stands by (see 9-10 July).

Helena Wreck Located

The Associated Press | 18 Apr 2018 | By Amy Beth Hanson

HELENA, Mont. — A Microsoft co-founder's mission to locate sunken warships in the South Pacific has chalked up another victory with the discovery of the USS Helena nearly 75 years after it was sunk by Japanese torpedoes in the waters off the Solomon Islands, reviving stories of the battle-tested ship's endurance and the nearly unbelievable survival of 165 of the crewmen.

Paul Allen's team searches for the ships to "bring the history back into a relevant conversation," said Janet Greenlee, a spokeswoman for Allen's Vulcan Inc. "He wants to honor those that have served and are serving."

The wreckage of the Helena was found March 23, about a half mile (860 meters) below the surface of the New Georgia Sound. The team identified the light cruiser by the number 50 on its side and by comparing the wreck to the USS Helena's schematics.

In all, more than 730 of the Helena's crew of 900 survived the July 5, 1943, sinking during the Battle of Kula Gulf.

Most of the crew was rescued out of the water and another group was picked up nearby the next day. But a third group spent nearly five days adrift in life rafts, during which some of the injured died, before the sunburned, dehydrated and emaciated men decided their best chance of survival was to take shelter on Vella Lavella Island.

The shoeless sailors had to walk across a sharp coral reef to get to the jungle island, which they knew was occupied by Japanese troops, Navy gunner's mate Frank P. Cellozzi of Ohio wrote in a 1984 account. They crawled into the jungle and fell asleep before being awakened by a group of natives wearing loin cloths and carrying spears, Cellozzi wrote.

One spoke enough broken English to make it clear they would help. The natives in some cases carried the Americans into the jungle for miles, stopping occasionally to pick coconuts. The survivors built a latrine and a shelter and the natives escorted them to a freshwater stream where they could bathe, Cellozzi wrote.

An Australian Methodist missionary named A.W.E. Silvester and two other Coastwatchers aided in their care and helped arrange for their middle-of-the-night rescue 12 days after their ship sank. Coastwatchers were intelligence operatives stationed on remote Pacific islands during World War II to observe enemy movements and help rescue stranded troops.

"One of the remarkable stories, not just about the crew and the ship's service, is the tenacity of the crew after the sinking and being separated," said Allen's spokeswoman, Greenlee. "It really does sound like a movie script."

The USS Helena was the third World War II discovery in less than three weeks by Allen's R/V Petrel team. The aircraft carrier the USS Lexington was discovered March 4 and the USS Juneau, another light cruiser, was located March 17.

The USS Helena was the second of five vessels named for Montana's capital city, and was the first ship to receive the Navy Unit Commendation for its role in the World War II battles. It survived a torpedo strike during the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and sunk Japanese vessels in other battles.

A memorial to the USS Helena ships is located in Anchor Park in downtown Helena.

This article was written by Amy Beth Hanson from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@newscred.com.