When Germany invaded Russia in late June 1941, Japanese leaders debated whether to join their Axis ally and attack the Soviets-who had defeated Japanese troops along the northern border of Manchukuo in 1939-or proceed with plans to target European colonies in the Far East. This new book tells the full dramatic story of WWII through maps, including rare documents used by both the Axis and Allies and more than 100 new maps created by National Geographic. It's unbelievable, as far as I'm concerned, I never expected anything like this, it was a shock, hard to believe that something like that was happening.In honor of Pearl Harbor Day, we are publishing an excerpt from National Geographic's Atlas of World War II. And then I was looking up in the sky, you could see the planes, you could see all the explosion of shots, I even got to see two Japanese planes. We could hear all the noises, we could see all the black smoke and all the thundering noises of all the explosion of the ships. Otani: Yes, we saw it very clearly, we're not very far from Pearl Harbor. Otani’s experience captured the sentiments of disbelief that many Hawai‘i residents felt after witnessing the Japanese attack. 26, 1921, in Honolulu, Otani grew up in Honolulu where his father owned a successful fish auction business. (AP Photo)Īnother witness to the Pearl Harbor attack was Nisei Akira Otani. As Japanese aviators rained bombs on Pearl Harbor, starting war in the Pacific, offshore properties are also wrecked and burned. "Don't worry," he said.įiremen and civilians rush to the scene with fire hoses to save homes and stores in the Japanese and Chinese sections of Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, on Dec. We'll protect you." "Shinpai suru na," he said. They came up and say, "War, war," and that's when we believed that something was happening. Then we could hear somebody yelling and it was Mr. Then we heard this terrible sound coming down from the street. Then when you saw the bombs, the explosion and the smoke and the sound of that plane just, I'm telling you it was really scary. We thought it was maneuvers because nobody had any feeling that we'll be ever invaded by Japanese, right? They were already fighting someone else, so we didn't think about it. We saw that round red circle, and we didn't think it was war. Minehira: See, we lived in ʻEwa, so we heard this sound coming, sounded like a swarm of bees, you know that humming sound? As soon as they got closer, the house started to vibrate, so by the time it did, the planes were right above our head. Minehira is interviewed by Tom Ikeda and Kelli Nakamura on March 2, 2011, as part of the Densho Visual History Collection. Due to the proximity of their home to the harbor, her family was forced to evacuate from ʻEwa Beach and had to live temporarily in a Japanese language school before moving to another home. However, the changes brought by war were immediately felt by residents of Oʻahu in the hours and days following the attack.īorn April 30, 1925, in Waipahu, Hawaiʻi, Helene Minehira witnessed the attack. The attack on Pearl Harbor brought America into World War II and raised suspicions of the large Japanese communities on the West Coast and in Hawaiʻi. 7, 1941, "a date which will live in infamy." Despite numerous historical precedents for unannounced military action, the lack of any formal warning by Japan led President Franklin D. Pacific Fleet as the Japanese expanded throughout the Pacific region. The attack was intended to neutralize the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor located on Oʻahu. 7, 1941, the Japanese Navy launched a surprise military attack against the U.S. They were interviewed in March 2011 as part of the Densho Visual History Collection. Locally, the changes brought by the coming war were immediately felt.Īs part of an ongoing project with the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Center for Oral History, we are hearing the voices of those who experienced that day in Honolulu.Įthnic studies professor Ty Kāwika Tengan shares firsthand accounts from Helene Minehara and Akira Otani. Eighty-one years ago on Wednesday, the Japanese Navy launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, bringing the United States into World War II.
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