Pearl Harbor
At 0755 on the morning of December 7, 1941, Helm had just turned into West Loch in Pearl Harbor, en route to deperming buoys, when Japanese carrier planes attacked the naval base. It was the only ship under way at the time of the attack. The destroyer manned her guns and brought down at least one of the attackers while she was strafed and slightly damaged by two bombs close aboard. After the attack, she joined the task group of carrier USS Saratoga, just arrived from San Diego and served as screening ship and plane guard.
Read more about this topic: USS Helm (DD-388)
Famous quotes containing the words pearl harbor, pearl and/or harbor:
“Pilot to crew. Take a good look at Pearl Harbor. Maybe it’s something you’ll want to remember.”
—Dudley Nichols (1895–1960)
“I know of the leafy paths that the witches take
Who come with their crowns of pearl and their spindles of wool,
And their secret smile, out of the depths of the lake....”
—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)
“Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land,
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.”
—Emma Lazarus (1849–1887)