Bomb Site: WW II, to burn west coast forest.

[mdvaden]

Curious ...

Have any of the folks on this forum been to the bomb site near Brookings, Oregon, just north of Crescent City, where the Japanese plane delivered by a submarine bombed the forest to burn it down?

I was one day short of enough time to get by there last week.

Anyone know the size of the crater, or how much visual evidence remains?

It's Google-able - but wanted to know if anyone had first hand experience visiting the site recently or in the past.

[Paul_H]

I never heard of Japanese planes bombing the mainland but have heard stories of these incendiary devices since I was a kid.

Fire Ballons

[Jeff]

Many have not heard the story of something our side was working on.

Bat Bombs

[SPIKER]

I have not been there but hear (I watch a lot of discovery channel & history channel) that there were several Jap attacks on the mainland. most of which were done using the balloons mentioned above.   they were brightly colored helium/hydrogen filled type balloons that were meant to attract kids to them. then the bomb would go off when picked up.  I think they were more of a shrapnel type bomb more for maiming than killing as a terrorist type attack.  I had not heard of the fire bombing the north west. but they did have a base in the USA up in the farthest west Alaska island chain that we had to fight them off of which not many people are aware of...   the attack may have been sent in similar time frame??

mark

[Cedarman]

I thought lightning strikes would work better than  a couple thousand balloons.

[shinnlinger]

I have not been to that site, but it did happen as you say.  To my knowledge the only time an a japanese plane attacked the lower 48.  A submarine had a small hanger on the deck and a small sea plane inside.  It had to be assembled  and then after the raid the pilot landed and just got in the sub or perhaps they would take the plane back apart.

Back in the late 90's, they actually found the pilot who dropped the bomb in Japan and brought him over to dedicate a trail there.  He brought his hari kari sword with him that he had in his plane during the raid in case he wasn't warmly recieved.

The idea was that if the forests were burning the US would have to send men to fight it and loose a natural resource.  Black paratroopers were ussually used for this work, the triple nickles I believe.

It was an incindiery bomb, so I dont believe there is any crater.

THe japs also shelled the oregon coast by submarine , they were nine miles off the coast and the shore battery only had 8 mile guns so they stay buttoned up and didn't reveal their position. And I think Some school children were killed by a shrapnel bomb in a tree.

[SPIKER]

some of the interesting parts is that the GOV would not let even local papers release much if any of the info for fear that the mainland states might get demoralized and or cause a panic rush on the stores & gas stations ammo stores ect...

though looking back I think it would have had even MORE men mad & wanting to sign up to go after them, in my opinion...

similar things happened in the days after 9-11 but soon stopped as the few that were ready were quickly enlisted.  filling up the training dates and others seemed to not go through with it so after a few months they sign up quit...   this was what I saw in local papers anyhow not sure if that trend was national or not/??


mark