Honda Point Disaster - Ships Involved

Ships Involved

The lost ships were:

• USS Delphy (DD-261) was the flagship in the column. She ran aground on the shore at 20 knots (37 km/h). After running aground, she sounded her siren. The siren alerted some of the later ships in the column, helping them avoid the tragedy. Three men died. There was one civilian aboard the Delphy. Eugene Dooman, an expert on Japan with the State Department, was aboard as a guest of Captain Watson, whom he had first met in Japan.
• USS S. P. Lee (DD-310) was following a few hundred yards behind. She saw the Delphy suddenly stop, and turned to port (left) in response. She ran into the coast.
• USS Young (DD-312) made no move to turn. She tore her hull open on submerged rocks. The water rushed in, and capsized her onto her starboard (right) side within minutes. Twenty men died.
• USS Woodbury (DD-309) turned to starboard, but ran into an offshore rock.
• USS Nicholas (DD-311) turned to port and also hit a rocky outcropping.
• USS Fuller (DD-297) piled up next to the Woodbury.
• USS Chauncey (DD-296) made an attempt to rescue sailors atop the capsized Young. She ran aground nearby.

Light damage was recorded by:

• USS Farragut (DD-300) ran aground, but was able to extricate herself. She was not lost.
• USS Somers (DD-301) was lightly damaged.

The remaining five avoided the rocks:

• USS Percival (DD-298)
• USS Kennedy (DD-306)
• USS Paul Hamilton (DD-307)
• USS Stoddert (DD-302)
• USS Thompson (DD-305)