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Ernest N. Ely F.3c USN USS West Virginia 1940-1941 |
Ernest Ely joined the Navy in the summer of 1940 at the age of 20 years
old, was sent to Pearl shortly thereafter . Ernest was
present on board the West Virginia, the day the Japanese attacked Pearl
Harbor. Barely 21 years old, Ernest was a Fireman Second Class and
assigned the to the duty of water tender. During the attack,
Ernest found himself thrown overboard wearing only trousers, swimming
towards Ford Island, amid the
burning oil, and chaos. Covered in oil, Ernest spent most of
the day carrying wounded and dying men from the trucks to the
infirmaries and hospitals. By 12.00 am, the following day (Monday
December 8, 1941) he was assigned to the Salt Lake City cruiser and
headed out to sea.
Ernest was schooled in the Philadelphia Navy yards, before finally being
discharged in 1945 as a Chief Petty Officer
My great Uncle has been reluctant to speak of many of the details that
happened on the day of the attack, as many who experienced it are.
I am looking for anyone who may have known or served beside him during
his service to the United States.
Respectfully,
Kent T. Mendenhall
See Ernest Ely's page on the USS Salt Lake City web site at http://ussslcca25.com/ely.htm |