Hey guys, Cliff here for That Was History…
and this week happens to be one of the best
weeks of the year.
Why, you ask?
… Sharks!
Lots and Lots of Sharks! and In honor of Shark
Week we’re taking a look at the story of
the USS Indianapolis and it’s not so fortunate
encounter with the sharks of the Pacific.
The USS Indianapolis was a Portland class
heavy cruiser of the United States Navy, and
if nothing else, this ship made a name for
itself in 1945 after successfully delivering
crucial components for the first atomic bomb
to a base on the Pacific island of Tinian.
This bomb would later level Hiroshima and
help escalate the end of fighting in Japan
during World War II.
Our topic for today happens shortly after
this accomplishment, however.
After delivering the parts for the atomic
bomb, the USS Indianapolis was given orders
to sail from Guam and meet up with the USS
Idaho near the Philippines to prepare for
an invasion of Japan.
The ship left on July 28th, 1945 to their next destination.
The first day of sailing went just like clockwork,
despite concerns of Japanese submarines patrolling
the Pacific.
It wasn’t until shortly after midnight on
July 30th that everything changed.
Without warning, a Japanese sub launched a
torpedo and hit the Indianapolis in the starboard
bow, and a second torpedo followed.
The second hit about Midship, which caused
fuel tanks and powder magazines to explode
in a massive chain reaction that basically
split the ship in two.
Water rushed into the ship, and the Indianapolis
was claimed by the sea in only 12 minutes.
Of the one thousand one hundred and ninety
six men on board, 900 made it into the water
alive.
Which, given the circumstances, was a very
good outcome.
That’s about 75% of the crew still alive
after a massive torpedo attack.
Unfortunately for the crew, their circumstances
were about to get a lot worse.
It would be another four days before any form
of contact would be made between the crew
and their rescuers.
During that time, concerns turned towards
exposure to the elements, dehydration, saltwater
poisoning, and of course - Shark Attacks!
Sharks from all around were drawn to the crew’s
location because of the initial explosion,
the sinking ship, thrashing movements, and
blood in the water.
In the beginning, sharks focused on the floating
dead.
The bodies were a quick and easy meal, but
as time passed the sharks began to target
the living.
This forced the crew to make decisions and
sacrifices they never dreamed of.
It was not uncommon for the bleeding members
to be isolated away from the group, and as
soon as someone died, their body became a
sacrifice to appease the beasts from below.
Other than that, the only tactic that seemed
to work was to huddle together to appear very
large and pray that rescue would arrive soon
or death would come quickly.
Finally, on the fourth day shortly after 11:00
AM, a Navy plane flew over the stranded crew
and radioed for help.
A few hours later, another seaplane arrived
that dropped rafts and survival supplies.
The pilot of this plane, Lt. Adrian Marks,
also disobeyed orders and landed on the water’s
surface in order to help rescue those who
were at the greatest risk of a shark attack.
A little after midnight, the USS Doyle finally
arrived to rescue the remaining survivors.
Only Three hundred and seventeen crewmen survived
their battle for life during their four days
in the water.
Estimates for the number of deaths from shark
attacks range from around 24 to almost 150.
There’s no way of knowing for sure, but
I do want to point out that the biggest killers
were not the sharks.
If 900 made it into the water alive, and up
to 150 were taken by sharks… that still
leaves 433 people who died of other causes.
No matter how we divvy up the cause of death,
the USS Indianapolis incident remains the
worst maritime disaster in U.S. naval history
and very likely contains the largest shark
attack numbers in such a short period of time.
Also, since I know you are itching to find
out which species of shark was responsible,
the answer is most likely the Oceanic Whitetip
Shark.
Whitetip’s are very aggressive because food
sources in the open ocean are sometimes scarce.
They take what they can get and are not afraid
to deviate from their typical diet.
Thus anything floating on the ocean’s surface,
like the crew of the Indianapolis, becomes
a target.
It has also been mentioned that Tiger sharks
may have been involved in some of the killings
As you probably already know, Tiger sharks
are also very aggressive and are considered
to have the widest food spectrum of all sharks.
It is not uncommon to find inedible manmade
objects in their stomach, which is reason
enough to believe that they wouldn’t have
missed an opportunity to investigate the hundreds
of bodies floating above them.
So tell me, do you have a favorite species
of shark and why is it your favorite?
Leave me a comment down below.
Also, be sure to check out these other awesome
videos.
Just because this episode is almost finished
doesn’t mean that you have to be.
I personally recommend any of them.
That's it for now. Thanks for watching, and I will see you next
time.
