Denver (CL 58) - Naval Cruise Book

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Wake Carrol in tfie Snow Mason — Heaving Line Bilge Pump Convoy 40— No. 6 4l8

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before, hence the lack of any return fire. The ahernoon of D Day at Ulithi wound up with a picnic and swimming party on the Vieach But Pacific Fleet cruisers just don ' t have things that nice for long. The DcMiir ' . ' i divi- sion joined the Seventh Fleet and by the middle of October was in the thickest part ot the Philippine liberation campaign. Dur- ing a typhoon she fired a bombardment on Suluan Island in support of a Ranger Unit which secured the island, and thus claims to have fired the first big gun salvo in that campaign at 0801 on October 17, 1944. The main landings on the beaches of Leyte were complicated by the still threatening typhoon, but on the 19th the Dtinvr ' .s guns were again blazing away at targets in the vicinity of Dulag town, and on the 20th the landing occurred without opposition. After the landings, the bombardment group lay off the beachhead during daylight hours anc4 accommodated the Army spotters by placing call fire as the troops moved inland During the pre-assault bombardment and the call-fire which followed, Dciiicr was credited with damage and destruction of Japanese supply dumps, trucks, pillboxes, and other installations. At night the bom- bardment group patrolled the southern part of Leyte Gulf, ready to meet any surface threat from Surigao Straits, either east or south. The Diinvr was present when this threat materialized late on October 24, 1944. Submarine and plane sightings throughout the 23rd and 24th showed the enemy to be concentrating in the Mindoro area for what could only mean an attempt to de stroy our fleet units protecting Leyte Gulf and thus cut off and annihilate our land forces on Leyte and nearby islands Soon after 0100 on the 25th contacts from PT boats stationed at the southern entrance re- porteci sightings of several ships entering the straits from the southwest between Camiguan and Bohol Islands. The story writ- ten the night of the 24th and the day of the 25th IS now well known, and has won its place as one of the actions that broke the back of Japanese naval strength. It is the Story of the Battle of Surigao Strait where the Japs met the ghost battleships of Pearl Harbor. Due to the great popular appeal of these old Pearl Harbor BB ' s and in rendering the honors certainly due them, it IS felt that the story of the splendid job done and tremendous fire put out by the cruisers has never been fully told. The Jap forces were believed to have been composed ol two battleships, four cruisers, and ten destroyers. Tactically, the situation could hardly have been more unfavorable for the enemy. He ran a gauntlet of our PT boats and destroyers only to arrive at the northern end to find on his first contact that his T had been crossed by the superior force under Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf. The Diiu ' tr formed part of the left flank forces and it can be seen from her action that the cruisers were along for more than the ride. Almost from the moment of com- mencing fire at 0350 observers on the Diiircr saw enemy ships in flames. Her gunners opened on target and immediately went to rapid salvo fire, and the first target was reported on fire in one minute. By 0400 her main hatterv target lay dead in the water and burning fiercely; it had without doubt been hit by many other of our ships, too. The five-inch battery then opened on another 17j.

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target, but the target was soon lost. For the next thirty minutes the action was fast, and several targets were taken under fire, only one of which appeared not to be in flames. At this time the remaining Japs who could run were doing just that. At 0630 the Dnuvr, Colioiiliuj and three destroyers were ordered to chase the cripples and finish them off, and shortly after 0700 they were shooting at a Katori class light cruiser that was dead in the water with her bow blown off. The target sank in ten min- utes and there was evidence of at least three other ships sinking or having sunk near the Jap cruiser at this time. Debris, fires, masts settling, small boats and wreckage littered the area. At 0730 in the morning the engage- ment was broken off and the Task Group headed north to be in a position to help a group of CVE ' s that was reported to be engaged with another Jap force. But the Denver did not get in on this and it is another story. However, the fact that she was not needed w as another stroke of luck for she had nearly exhausted her allowance of armor piercing projectiles and her high capacity projectiles had been pretty well used up on the shore bombardment. And in all Leyte Gulf she could find only 1100 six-inch AP ' s which she had to share with the Coliiml ' ui. Shooting at the Jap was an exercise the gunners en- joyed, but loading ammunition ' ith a sky full of bogies is no fun; the lads on the Dcii- I ' tT knew they had participated and done their share in a real surface action, and no one can ever talk them out of it or snow them under. A few days later the DLintr ' s AA boys got credit for an assist on a Jap Val and the ship Itself fell victim to one of the first Kamikaze attacks. It happened on October 28, and the plane was repeatedly hit by AA guns and plunged into the sea about fifty feet off the starboard quarter. No per- sonnel casualties were sustained, but the near miss of the plane and its bombs caused moderate underwater damage. Again Lady Luck was aboard — plus a number of fancy lead slingers. This Kamikaze was quickly followed by others in small numbers on that day and in force on the 29th, but thereafter the Divine Winds blew less strongly, and the Denver was sent off to get patched up — this time to Manus in the Admiralties. At Manus she was given excellent treat- ment by the repair ship Medusa, whose ex- perts performed the neat trick of listing her to port some fourteen degrees and very satis- factorily patching the hole in her starboard side. By this time Manus had recreation facilities that were welcomed by all, and liberty on the beach fortified by a few cold beers was greatly enjoyed. As a matter of fact, the repair crews were a little too efficient to suit all hands, for in a few weeks the Denver was again ready for action. She returned to the Leyte area in late November to help complete the securing of that area. Enemy action at that time con- sisted only of sporadic air attacks, and the only close call was a bomb dropped 200 yards off the starboard quarter. Four men were wounded, none seriously, by the re- sulting bomb fragments and the Jap bomber disintegrated in pulling out of its attack dive. No wonder the men of the Denver feel that not only can she get the job done — she ' ll get you back from it! In mid-December, the Denver participated 09