TULSA, Okla. — It is a day that has lived in infamy. Today marks 81 years since the attack on Pearl Harbor, killing and injuring thousands of servicemen and ultimately leading the United States to enter World War II.
While many battleships were affected, the USS Oklahoma received some of the biggest brunts of the attack that day.
Oklahoma was first commissioned in 1916 and served in World War I, protecting convoys on their way across the Atlantic Ocean.
After WWI, the ship was modernized to fit the times. According to the Oklahoma Historical Society, Oklahoma was one of the first ships in the U.S. to have its boilers, engines, and magazines enclosed within a reinforced armored belt.
Oklahoma would help American citizens during the Spanish Civil War before eventually relocating to Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese aircraft attacked the naval station, where Oklahoma capsized after being struck by multiple torpedoes.
Many servicemen were trapped inside or died due to the damages in Oklahoma. Ensign Francis C. Flaherty and Seaman First Class James Richard sacrificed their lives in order to save their fellow shipmates. According to the Oklahoma Historical Society, Oklahoma is believed to have lost at least 20 officers and nearly 400 servicemen that day.
The U.S. would officially declare war against Japan a day after the attack. Many of Japan's allies, including Germany and Italy at the time, would then declare war on the U.S. in response. Thus, it launched the entire nation to enter World War II.
Congress would later award Flaherty and Richard two posthumous Medals of Honor for their bravery and sacrifice in helping others escape during the attack.
Due to extensive damage, Oklahoma could not return to duty. The ship would be stripped of its weapons and sold for scrap by 1946. Oklahoma would sink a year later while being towed to a breaker's yard in California.
In total, 2,403 service members and civilians died during the attack. Many years later, Congress designated Dec. 7 as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day to honor and remember the lives lost during the attack.
Gov. Kevin Stitt ordered all American and Oklahoman flags to be lowered to half-staff today to honor those who died as a result of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor:
“On this poignant 81st anniversary of that fateful day, Oklahomans remember anew the terrible loss of life, the resultant courage of America’s brave crewmen and soldiers, and the resiliency of the American spirit."
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