I Survived the Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941: Chapters 8–14

The planes were flying so low they seemed to skim the tops of the taller ships.

Danny helped Mrs. Sudo open the wooden door that led to her root cellar—not much more than a hole in the dirt.

“All military personnel! Report to your posts! We are under attack! We are under attack! This is not a drill! America is under attack by Japan!”

Through a curtain of smoke across the harbor, Danny could see the planes pummeling the battleships, flying low, firing their guns, and then circling back for another attack.

His head felt like it had been split in two.
His hands and knees throbbed.

Danny finally struggled to his feet and staggered across the beach toward the road.

He saw a car parked at the edge of the beach, the front end partially hidden in a prickly bush.

Mack looked nothing like a fancy Sutton Place man trying to impress Danny’s mother.

His expression was fierce and determined.
“Let’s go,” he said. “That’s where I’m heading. You come with me. We’ll find her.”

When Danny got into the car, he noticed blood spattered on the doors.

“I got grazed by a bullet,” he said.

“They caught us by surprise,” Mack said. “The Japanese blindsided us.”

“To knock out our ships and bombers,” Mack said. “To cripple our entire Pacific fleet. That way they can take over whatever they want in the Pacific—China, the Philippines, Korea. Japan is a small country, but they want to be powerful. They need more land. So they’re taking over other countries, like Hitler has been doing in Europe. And now we won’t be able to stop them.”

They pulled up to the gate, which was blocked by a smashed car, still smoldering.

There was wreckage everywhere—twisted metal all over the ground, shattered glass, pieces of burned wood. He stepped over a tattered hat.

They destroyed the barracks and the mess hall.

“Hospital’s fine, sir. No hits. They’re treating the wounded.”
Danny closed his eyes with relief.

He waited for a lull in the explosions and then he scrambled to his feet.

Mack dragged Danny behind what was left of a huge airplane hangar. Through the enormous holes in the walls, Danny saw U.S. bomber planes—shattered and burning.

“I’m hit,” he rasped. “My back. I think it’s bad.”

His stomach heaved as he saw a jagged wound.

Mack winced in pain as they pulled him onto the grass and laid him on his side.

“All the ambulances are out, sir.”
Mack nodded grimly. His jaw was clenched and his face was very pale.

The car had been spared any hits. It barely even had a scratch.

He easily found the two ignition wires Earl had shown him.

When they got to the hospital entrance, Danny blared the horn, signaling for help.

Outside the car, two orderlies rushed out with a stretcher.

He watched Ma as she hurried from man to man, changing bandages, holding hands, never flinching. Mrs. Sudo was right—she was brave.

All night reports trickled in: The battleship Arizona was gone, along with more than a thousand men.

The Oklahoma was capsized, and more than a hundred men were still trapped inside.

Ma slumped in her chair, more tired than Danny had ever seen her.

But Danny noticed her red and swollen eyes.

And the next morning, he went to the post office and sent a telegram to Earl Gasky.

Mrs. Mills told her that Earl and all of his guys had enlisted in the army.

Ma said that all letters from Hawaii would be censored; soldiers would read his letter and cross out any information that could help the enemy.