Military Bookshelf: Escape From the Deep
Military.com - Tom Miller
May 12, 2008
Escape from the Deep: The Epic Story of a Legendary Submarine and Her Courageous Crew, by Alex Kershaw.
Da Capo, $26 (256p) ISBN 978-0-306-81519-5
Kershaw has made his mark as a popular historian by digging up little-known stories from World War II: The Bedford Boys, about the staggering losses suffered by tiny Bedford, Va., on D-Day; The Longest Winter, about an intelligence and reconnaissance platoon and their heroic stand against a numerically-superior German force at the Battle of the Bulge; and The Few, about the handful of American pilots who fought with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain.
Now, Kershaw turns his attention to the USS Tang, "the most daring and deadly submarine raider in the Pacific," and her intrepid crew.
Led by Commander Richard O'Kane, a decorated submariner known for his unorthodox and aggressive tactics, the Tang's distinguished service already had earned it a Presidential Unit Citation. As a reward, O'Kane was given the option of operating alone in the dangerous waters of the Formosa Strait—an option that he eagerly accepted.
The Strait was an important Japanese shipping route, and the Tang enjoyed extraordinary success—sinking thirteen enemy ships on "one of the most destructive patrols of the war." But, the final torpedo of the mission boomeranged—doubled back—and struck the Tang, instantly killing half of the crew and sinking the sub.
A few of the crew—including O'Kane—were thrown into the sea by the initial blast. Of those trapped in the sunken sub, only a handful managed to escape—in fact, only nine men out of a crew of eighty-seven survived the crucible. Those few who made it out of the sub and to the surface are the only Americans to ever escape from a submerged submarine.
Plucked from the water by a Japanese patrol boat, the survivors were incarcerated in a notorious prisoner-of-war camp on the Japanese mainland. Brutally beaten and systematically starved, the men barely stayed alive. Upon liberation at war's end, all were severely emaciated and suffered various ailments. O'Kane, who would be awarded the Medal of Honor for his steadfast leadership during the patrol and captivity, weighed eighty-eight pounds and was near death.
The submarine service "suffered the highest mortality rate of all the armed services" during World War II. This harrowing story of one sub's deadly fate is an eloquent tribute to the extraordinary courage of the sailors of the silent service.
----
Sound Off...What do you think? Join the discussion
Copyright 2008 by Tom Miller
A former history professor, Tom Miller is a novelist and essayist. His most recent novel, Freshman Sensation (2007), is available from the publisher at http://www.ccjournal.com/. His reviews and essays have appeared in numerous books, journals, and newspapers, including The Encyclopedia of Southern History, American History Illustrated, the Chicago Tribune, and the Des Moines Register. He also is a former Army Officer and Vietnam Veteran.
