Found this story linked at another site and thought it worth sharing.
The Pacific War is full of epic
stories both of combat between vessels, and the even older battle of men &
ships against the perils of the sea. One of the lesser known encounters and epic
damage control fights came fifty-five years ago in December 1944, when U.S.S.
BERGALL engaged IJN MYOKO. A fascinating twist of fate would bring these two
together, and see them both fighting to stay afloat against the odds.
The encounter had its beginnings at 1630 on 5 December, 1944,
when USS BERGALL (SS-320) under command of Commander J.M. Hyde departed Exmouth
Gulf, Australia bound for her assigned war patrol off the Malayan and Indo-China
coasts. Tagging along with Hyde on Commander's training this journey was PCO Ben
Jarvis, whose previous service included USS Nautilus and Sailfish. It would
prove to be an curriculum. On this journey BERGALL (and the Dace on the same
general mission) carried a load of anchored mines in her aft torpedo tubes. The
plan was to lay these off the Indochina coast, along the long reef called
Royalist Bank. BERGALL’s course was plotted to take her around the eastern end
of Java, via Lombok Strait, then westward through the Flores Sea and finally
through Karimata Strait. This was the plan, and was followed.
MORE. Heroism happened on both sides of the war.
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