Dark Seas | The Giant Waves that Almost Changed the End of WW2 @DarkDocsSeas | Uploaded February 2024 | Updated October 2024, 1 day ago.
US Navy Task Force 38 had been heavily pounding Japanese airfields and facilities around the Philippines for over three days.
The intensity of combat was so that Admiral Halsey’s ships were almost out of fuel and were bound to meet with refueling ships to continue supporting the amphibious landings at Mindoro.
By December 17, 1944, the weather had worsened, so refueling operations were suspended. The sky abruptly turned grey, the sea turned rougher, and rain engulfed Task Force 38.
Still, there were no warnings of any cyclonic disturbance, and Halsey ordered his ships to relocate to another area to continue refueling. Doom befell upon TF38 from then forward.
The barometers began to drop at an alarming rate. The wind rose to 60 knots, and a thick mist surrounded Task Force 38. Then, colossal waves of around 50 feet began to clash with the hulls of all ships.
The smaller vessels were completely lifted and thrown around like leaves in the wind. Sailors fell overboard, never to be seen again in the darkness of the ocean, while others struggled to avoid being hit by the aircraft that crashed into each other aboard the carriers.
A small but ruthless typhoon had consumed TF38, and there was no way out. The brave sailors, with future US President Gerald Ford among them, were caught in the eye of the storm.
As fires erupted, aircraft crashed on the decks, and the sea devoured ships, it was up to men like Lieutenant Ford to keep their ships afloat.
US Navy Task Force 38 had been heavily pounding Japanese airfields and facilities around the Philippines for over three days.
The intensity of combat was so that Admiral Halsey’s ships were almost out of fuel and were bound to meet with refueling ships to continue supporting the amphibious landings at Mindoro.
By December 17, 1944, the weather had worsened, so refueling operations were suspended. The sky abruptly turned grey, the sea turned rougher, and rain engulfed Task Force 38.
Still, there were no warnings of any cyclonic disturbance, and Halsey ordered his ships to relocate to another area to continue refueling. Doom befell upon TF38 from then forward.
The barometers began to drop at an alarming rate. The wind rose to 60 knots, and a thick mist surrounded Task Force 38. Then, colossal waves of around 50 feet began to clash with the hulls of all ships.
The smaller vessels were completely lifted and thrown around like leaves in the wind. Sailors fell overboard, never to be seen again in the darkness of the ocean, while others struggled to avoid being hit by the aircraft that crashed into each other aboard the carriers.
A small but ruthless typhoon had consumed TF38, and there was no way out. The brave sailors, with future US President Gerald Ford among them, were caught in the eye of the storm.
As fires erupted, aircraft crashed on the decks, and the sea devoured ships, it was up to men like Lieutenant Ford to keep their ships afloat.
