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Veterans museum curator Garofalo passes, 95 |
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Joe Garofalo was
a Seabee who served in the 121st N.C.B. 20th Marines, 4th Marine
Division, Roi-Namur, Saipan and Tinian.
Personal
Experiences of World War II
Joseph Garofalo
Enlisted: October, 1942
Active Service: November, 1942
October 1942, I enlisted in the U.S. Navy Seabees and arrived at Boot
Camp – Camp Bradford, Virginia in November. For a city boy, 22 years
old, it was culture shock. The conditions were primitive, cold and
muddy. We piled snow against our tents for insulation, and although coal
was scarce, we tried to keep warm around one small pot belly stove in
the middle of the tent.
After five weeks, we left Camp Bradford and went on to Camp Endicott in
Davisville R.I. There, we trained in the rifle range, close order drill,
hikes, callisthenic's, etc. During this time, I had one “liberty” and
quickly found a good Italian restaurant in Providence. After enjoying
the Italian food, my spirits were lifted, feeling more fit and seasoned
than we started, our battalion was then divided in half. One half went
to Port Hueneme, California and my half was shipped to Camp Lejune,
North Carolina for advanced training. We then became the 121st Seabees
as part of the 4th Marine Division. We were re-designated as 3rd
Battalion, 20th Marine Engineers, 4th Marine Division on May 10, 1943.
After a few months at Lejune, we departed to Camp Pendleton, California.
Once there we were given more advanced training, such as amphibious
maneuvers, bridge building, rifle range, obstacle course, demolition,
etc.
Roi-Namur, Kwajalein
Marshall Islands
February 1, 1944 |
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In January 1944, we left San Diego, our battalion landed on February 1,
1944 on the Japanese held Kwajalein Island Roi-Namur, Marshall Island
Group. Prior to disembarking, we were waiting to climb down on nets to
the LCVP’s, it started to get light and foggy. I was looking at the
ocean staring and thinking the worst. Suddenly I saw something floating
towards our ship—I couldn’t make it out. A few minutes later, I saw a
raft with three figures. My buddies and I saw this and we immediately
started firing. They were Japs . At the same time a Navy man (crew
member of the transport) started firing a 20mm automatic. He hit one on
the raft and his body flipped into the air. Finally, all three were
killed. The three men had charges with them that adhere to the hull to
plant on our transport to blow it up. That was our baptism of fire. It
was quite an experience. All this happened before our landing on
Roi-Namur, (Kwajalein). After the island was secured, we went to Maui,
Hawaiian Islands (so called a rest camp). In May 1944, we departed for
our next objective, an island called Saipan, part of the Marianas
Islands.
Saipan, Marianas Islands
June 15, 1944
On June 15, 1944, we landed on Saipan, where we debarked in LCVP landing
crafts. Our objective was to land on Blue-Beach- 2, which was to the
right of the Japanese sugar mill smoke stack (chimney), as stated on the
mimeograph sketch that was given to us.
Hundreds of landing craft were rendezvousing, waiting for the signal to
head for their designated landing beach. Moments later our craft was
alone. There were only ten men in our LCVP because we were carrying
ammunition. We were headed towards Tinian, the wrong island, which was
three miles to the south of Saipan. I looked at my sketch, and then
looked up and saw Saipan disappearing. I told Chief Sullivan (who was in
charge of our platoon on board) “Chief, we are headed for the wrong
island”. Suddenly I saw the coxswain staring into space, frozen at the
wheel. We realized that he was in shock and we were headed for Tinian
the wrong island. One of our men heard me shout at the Chief and quickly
slapped the coxswain in his face. Just as he recovered, the Japanese
artillery on Tinian opened fire on us. Two shells came very close to us.
The craft almost capsized – we were taking on water. As we turned away
heading for Saipan, one shell exploded in our wake. This was very close,
even if you were a good swimmer, you would have never made it. The gear
and treacherous currents would have drowned all of us. We made it to
Saipan and there we encountered deadly artillery fire on the beach.
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"D” Day on Saipan
D-Day on Saipan was hell. Artillery fire was intense for two days. We
sustained approximately 2,000 casualties the first day. We were strafed,
sniper fired, booby trapped etc.
On the first night, June 15, 1944, Lt. Robert Fiske picked up nine of us
to go on patrol. Couter-attacks by Japanese were coming through gaps in
our lines. Fiske told me to remove my two canteens, so as not to make
noise while crawling. I removed one – the other, I had trouble getting
off. A few moments passed, I still couldn’t get it off, so I went on the
trail of the patrol with Lenny Delunas. I did not see the rest of the
men who were going on that night patrol. I crawled approximately two
hundred yards, not knowing where I was going. I started to smell pungent
body odor and I heard Japanese voices. My buddy Lenny started to shake
and mumble. I grabbed his lips and punched his thighs, and softly said,
don’t make a sound—don’t breathe hard. We backed up slowly breathed very
quietly, turned supposedly 180 degrees crawled back, and were challenged
by Marines.
Who goes there?
I responded Joe Garofalo, 3rd BN, 20th Marines
Where do you come from?
I reply, The Bronx!
What’s the Bronx?
I reply Yankee Stadium, Bronx Park.
The Marines let us go by. Lenny and I reported this incident to Lt.
Fiske and told him of Japanese activities about 200 yards away. He
stated that they had cancelled the patrol because the terrain was too
difficult and the star shells would give our position away, etc. Within
the hour, about 200 Japs were mowed down in the counter-attack.
Incidentally, the men who were assigned to the patrol that was cancelled
were awarded the Bronze Star. Lenny and I were recommended for the
award. The recommendation is on our discharge papers, but as of yet we
have not received it.
“D” Plus - 1--- Bringing Ammunition to the Front Lines
Tony Mellino was in charge of the detail. I was told to put the carbine
sling around my neck so that I could push the wagon loaded with belted
ammunition with two hands. One man pulled, while I was in the back
pushing. Two men with Thompson’s and two men with carbines, each
escorted us. They also assisted in pushing the wagon.
Suddenly, all hell broke loose. The wagon stopped and our escorts
scattered. I went around the wagon and saw a Jap coming at me, wearing
only a jock strap and a helmet. He had already hit the hand grenade
plunger on his helmet to activate it. As I tried to take my carbine off
from around my neck, I saw bullet holes enter his chest and smoke rings
coming out. The men that scattered, took cover opened fire on him. He
fell on his own grenade and his body lifted about two feet above the
ground. Shrapnel hit the ammo and the wagon. His body landed
approximately six feet from me. This was another close encounter. At
that time a Navy Corpsman took me aside and insisted that I drink some
whiskey. Reality hit me later when I realized what had happened. Later
that same afternoon, I was bringing the wounded back when a Japanese
machine gunner opened up on us. I landed on top of a Marine. The Machine
gunner sprayed continuously. The bullets just missed my back by inches.
I could see the bullets hitting a wall. I told the Marine below me to
exhale. I thought that was the end. Moments later, the Jap machine
gunner was killed. After this incident, I saw a Marine staggering in the
area. He was hit in the face. I ran to him. He put his arms around me.
He couldn’t see. He was about six feet tall – I’m 5’5. I took him to
some Corpsman. Then I remember giving him some lime hard candy to suck
on. I never knew his name, nor what happened to him. It all happened so
fast. Occasionally I still think of him.
The next day I entered a cave, and found a couple of cases of canned
crab meat, which I shared with all. It was difficult eating this crab
meat without getting flies in your mouth. We finally devised a way to
eat canned crab meat. Open the can, put it between your knees, fanning
continuously, as the meat goes into your mouth. The flies were awful.
Sanitary conditions did not exist. The dead were everywhere. A catholic
priest was asking to have dead Marines removed. I volunteered. Two men
would pick up the dead, I was in a Duck (treaded vehicle) with built in
shelves. When the Duk was full, the bodies went out to a ship for burial
at sea. I handled many dead. It had to be done. Still, sometimes, I get
nightmares of these occurrences.
Another cave I entered had a few wooden crates which held about twelve
bottles of sake. I took them out, and my buddies surrounded me. The
bottles were sealed on top with wax, so the men helped themselves to
this find. The Japanese had poisoned the wine. One man died immediately,
one went blind. The sake was destroyed. Booby traps were all over. The
Japanese sugar mill in Charan Kanoa, had a so called spotter in the
smokestack who would direct artillery fire to our beach line. He caused
many casualties. He was finally spotted and eliminated. He was in the
stack for two days. The day after this incident, I entered the sugar
mill and saw the large leather belting that turned the mechanism that,
in turn, crushed the sugar cane.
I had helped my uncle in his cobbler shop and had some experience with
leather. This belting was about twenty inches wide and was about four
stories high. Doubling the length (in total) it was about eighty feet
long. Before I cut it down. I cleared some debris to make a path to run,
to avoid getting hurt or possibly killed.
I yelled at a couple of Marines to get out of the way. One, by the way,
was Bill Gallo a well known cartoonist and sports columnist for the New
York Daily News, also in the twentieth regiment. I cut the belt, made
slabs, and put them aside. When we invaded Tinian, I took them with me.
Later on I became a cobbler for the 121st and used some of this leather
for ladies lifts for nurses and aids. I made knife sheaths for men in my
regiment. Incidentally, I donated my knife and sugar mill sheath to the
museum on Saipan in June 1994.
Other Incidents on Saipan
Japanese Families in Stockade
Japanese and civilian families were behind barbed wire stockades on
Saipan. I had a few cans of condensed milk with me to give to mothers
with infants. With my knife, I punctured two holes on top of each can
and gave one can to a woman holding and infant, through the barbed wire.
Instantly, the husband snatched it from her and immediately started to
drink it. I threatened to shoot this barbaric Jap. I held him with my
carbine through the barbed wire. My buddy, Pat Gargano, handed her
another can of milk from which she fed the infant. She controlled the
flow of milk from the can by placing a finger on one hole. The milk
dropped into the infants mouth. She bowed many times. Thanking us.
Garapan, Saipan
I was guarding a prisoner with my buddy Pat Gargano. This Japanese
prisoner had cut marks on his stomach. It looked like he had intended to
commit Hari Kari. He spotted Pat’s large knife and made motions that he
wanted to use it on himself. I said to Pat, give it to him. He replied
are you crazy? I pulled the knife from Pat’s sheath, cocked my rifle,
stood back and threw the knife to the Jap. He picked it up, put it to
his stomach and started to tremble. Pat turned pale white, but the Jap
dropped it. Pat cursed me for a long time! We all did crazy things at
one time.
The Banzai Charge On Saipan
Lenny and I went to that are after the charge. We must have seen two
thousand bodies, mostly Japanese, but also quite a few Americans. The
Japanese found time to booby-trap some of the dead officers. One officer
was wired to a grenade. When I went to turn him over, the sun was
shining on the black thread. That is when I noticed the thread on the
grenade. The sun saved my life. Some of the Japanese soldiers were still
alive, but they died shortly. It was a terrible sight.
Finding the Maps
Amongst my findings on Saipan, I consider this one of great importance.
A few days after our initial assault I entered a cave and found a stack
of maps when open measured approximately 4x4, folded in a wooden box.
They were in color (code) of every city of Japan. I can’t recall. But
there were about 25 maps. Each map listed the types of buildings, with
name of the manufacturer printed on the roof of the essential
structures. I was advised by my friends to turn the maps over to
intelligence, which I did. What has always bothered me, is why would the
Japanese have these maps on Saipan?
It has been many years since that incident took place. The January 1993
issue of VFW. magazine there appeared a story “Nisei Achieved
Intelligence Coup” by Bill Wagner.
The eighth paragraph of the article stated that the coup was the
discovery of the Imperial Japanese Army’s ordinance inventory. It listed
amounts, types and manufacturers names and locations of the home
islands, providing new targets for our B-29’s. I found this inventory,
and I have many witnesses to support my credibility. I feel the 121st
NCB, the 4th Marine Division deserve the recognition with this matter. I
entered the cave alone and risked my life to find these maps and the
Nisei got the credit! The Nisei’s, however, contributed a great service
to the termination of the war in the Pacific.
North Field, Tinian
This incident happened on or about January 1945. Working on North Field
air strips with rollers, wheel barrows, shovels and rakes in the hot sun
can get very boring. One day a Ventura PV-1 Bomber, Navy patrol plane
landed on North Field. I got friendly with the pilot and after a few
days, I mentioned to him that I would like to go up with him on patrol
some day. He would oblige me only if a member of his crew was absent,
then I would take his place. My day came about a week later. He spotted
me on the strip and said “Joe, we need a tail gunner” and I replied “yes
sir”. I explained to the men with whom I had been working to cover for
me, for I was actually going to be “awol”. I had to crawl to the tail
end of the plane to man the twin 50 caliber machine gun. Prior to
getting into position, I was given instructions on how to use it. Up we
went, lying on my stomach with a 6” hole beneath me, I could see the
universe.
After three hours in that position, I was told to come forward. I was
getting sleepy in that position anyway. We were flying north of the
Marianas, close to 500 miles, of the patrol. We received ack-ack from
one island, I could see the black puffs of smoke below us. I was briefed
on this matter and assured that the Japanese anti-aircraft weapons could
not reach us. We bombed one island on the western side, probably a
docking area. We flew over six islands on this patrol. On the way back,
we encountered bad weather. At this point, I really missed being with my
wheelbarrow. I looked back at this adventure as a volunteer who risked
being court martialed. It was an experience I will never forget!
The three operations – Roi-Namur, Saipan, and Tinian with the 3rd
Battalion 20th Marine Engineers, 4th Marine Division are described in
the 121st Naval Construction Battalion History book.. It explains in
detail the functions of the 121st from its inception to its
decommissioning. This book was put together by our staff and I purchased
an edition in 1946. There are many other incidents that occurred on
Tinian Island of which I can explain in further detail on a one-to-one
basis.
We were very sea sick in the landing boat. When we hit the beach,
Renato Bianchi pulled me off the boat and into a shell hole on the
beach, we were under fire. Commander John Partridge was scared
shitless, and asked me to find his pack while we were being shot at.
I didn't really look to hard for it. A sniper had us pinned down
when the company commander crawled under me to avoid being hit,
raising my body into the line of fire. I thought I would be killed
anyway, so i stood up and emptied the fifteen rounds from my carbine
into the tree. The body of the sniper fell from the tree onto the
ground with a dull thump. As the Marines advanced across the island,
firing began to subside after a few hours. The island was secure in
about two days.
The Seabees designated as Marine engineers worked on a causeway on
Roi-Namur. On the second or third day a powerful explosion flung me
about four feet in the air, debris was still coming down a minute
later. Apparently 20 Marines had thrown a charge into a jap bunker
that was filled with torpedo heads. A second group of Marines was
going to do the same when they were interupted by the detonation of
the first bunker. The large crater that resulted was below the water
table and quickly filled with water. It was one of the biggest
explosions of the war. After the island was secured, we went to Maui
in the Hawaiian islands, where we rested and underwent further
training for the next three months. |
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