December 7, 2010 at 8:51am
This from The News Tribune: Floyd Herron, 91, remembers the "day of infamy" as well as can be expected for a man who spent it constantly shooting or loading an anti-aircraft gun under enemy fire.
He lives today in a top-floor apartment at Tahoma Terrace with his wife, Jeanne. They have a clear view of Mount Rainier in an apartment filled with his Navy memorabilia and her oil paintings.
He gets a sparkle in his eye when he talks about Pearl Harbor. He can't say for sure if his gun hit any of its targets, but he and his fellow sailors responded quickly and kept their enemy from sinking the ship.
The Pennsylvania was among the first to return fire in the Japanese assault, first with machine guns and then with heavier weapons such as the anti-aircraft gun Herron wielded.
The bigger guns were locked up that morning because the ship was under repairs and unsuspecting of an attack. Herron had just finished breakfast when enemy planes buzzed past the ship about 8 a.m. and hit their initial targets at nearby Fort Island. He broke a padlock on one of the guns and started delivering ammunition for his four-man team.
Herron kept his head down during the attack, so he can't say for sure what the scene looked like around the harbor.
"We were trained, and we had a job to do," he said.
To read the complete story, click here.
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