The last remaining survivor of the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor recalls the “terrible destruction” caused by the Japanese attack that killed 1,177 of his shipmates.
Louis A. Conter, now 102 years old, was just 20 years old when Japanese fighter planes took to the skies over the U.S. Navy base in Hawaii on December 7, 1941.
'Aloha. There is one thing you have to remember and that is to remember Pearl Harbor,” he said in a recorded message Thursday commemorating the “Day of Infamy” anniversary.
A 1,760-pound armored bomb struck the USS Arizona, leaving nearly 1,200 dead as the ship sank. The surprise attack left more than 2,400 people dead on the base.
Conter wanted to attend the Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony in Hawaii on Thursday, but it was decided he would have to remain in Grass Valley, California to preserve his health.
However, five other survivors of the attack returned to Pearl Harbor for the ceremony commemorating the attack, which propelled the United States into World War II.
Louis A. Conter, the last remaining survivor of the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor, remembers the 'terrible destruction' caused by the Japanese attack that killed 1,177 of his shipmates
He wanted to attend the Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony in Hawaii on Thursday, but it was decided he would have to remain in Grass Valley, California, to preserve his health.
Conter, now 102, was 20 years old when Japanese warplanes took to the skies in Honolulu, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941, killing more than 2,400 people
Five other survivors of the attack returned to Pearl Harbor Thursday for the ceremony commemorating the attack that pushed the United States into World War II.
At a previous event in 2021, Conter said, “I was aboard the USS Arizona that morning and witnessed the terrible destruction that occurred.
“I was grateful that I had survived and had the opportunity to serve during World War II.
“It is a great honor to recognize the men and women who were part of this history. And especially those who didn't get to see the legacy they would leave behind.
“Before I wrap this up, I want to say that of the 2,403 service members who died that day, 1,177 of my shipmates were aboard the USS Arizona, God bless you. Today lags behind those men.
'Many people call us heroes, but we are really not heroes. Those who gave everything, their lives, are the heroes.”
Ira “Ike” Schab, 103, returned to the scene of Pearl Harbor along with four other survivors for Thursday's anniversary.
It was held in a field across the harbor from the USS Arizona Memorial, a white structure that stands above the rusting hull of the battleship, which exploded in a fireball and sank shortly after being hit.
More than 1,100 Arizona sailors and Marines were killed and more than 900 are buried inside.
Harry Chandler, 102, (left), who raised the flag at a mobile hospital in Aiea Heights in the hills above Pearl Harbor in 1941, attended the ceremony at Pearl Harbor Thursday with other veterans
Veterans gather in Washington, DC, to mark the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor
A ceremony was held in Washington, DC, attended by World War II veterans
An event commemorating the 82nd anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor was held in New York City on Thursday
A moment of silence began at 7:55 a.m., at the same time the attack began on December 7, 1941.
Harry Chandler, 102, a Navy Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class, raised the flag at a mobile hospital in Aiea Heights in the hills above Pearl Harbor in 1941.
Looking across the water from his front-row seat at the ceremony grounds Thursday, Chandler said the memories of the USS Arizona explosion still come back to him today.
“I saw these planes coming and I thought they were planes coming from the United States until I saw the bombs falling,” Chandler said. They took cover and then drove trucks to Pearl Harbor, where they treated the wounded.
He remembers sailors trapped on the capsized USS Oklahoma, tapping on the hull of their ship to be rescued, and tending to those who eventually got out after teams cut holes in the ship.
'When I look outside, I can still see what's going on. I can still see what happened,” said Chandler, who now lives in Tequesta, Florida.
A 1,760-pound armored bomb struck the USS Arizona and the resulting attack sank the ship and left more than 1,100 dead.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs does not keep statistics on how many Pearl Harbor survivors are still alive
According to Navy records, the Dobbin lost three sailors. One was killed and two later died of wounds when fragments of a bomb hit the stern of the ship. They all had an anti-aircraft gun manned.
Schab never talked much about Pearl Harbor until about a decade ago. Since then, he has been sharing his story with his family, student groups and history buffs. And he has returned to Pearl Harbor several times since.
'The reason? “To pay tribute to the guys who didn't make it,” he said.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs does not keep statistics on how many Pearl Harbor survivors are still alive.
But department data show that of the 16 million people who served in World War II, only about 120,000 were alive as of October, and an estimated 131 die every day.
According to a rough estimate by military historian J. Michael Wenger, there were approximately 87,000 troops on Oahu at the time of the attack.