The Grooming of Alice :: essays research papers

Iwo jima is an eight square-mile island of sulfuric sand and volcanic ash. It is 700 miles south of Tokyo. The Japanese put radar stations on Iwo to warn of approaching B-29's which regularly flew right over it on bombing runs to Japan. The Japs also had fighter planes on the two airstrips. Alot of young Marines enroute to the beaches of Iwo were amazed at the firepower and damage inflicted on the island by the Navy's battleships and planes. They thought that there wouldn't be any Japanese left for the Marines to fight. Little did they know that the bombs and shells weren't even getting close to the enemy. Tokyo knew the Allies were interested in Iwo Jima so they put a garrison of 22,000 troops, under General Tadamichi Kuribayashi. These troops built up the island to one of the strongest defenses in the Pacific. They added 1500 pillboxes and block houses, trenches, and hundreds of connecting tunnels. 1500 underground rooms including communications centers, hospitals able to treat 40 0 injured with beds carved into rock walls. They also constructed storage rooms for ammo, food, and water. There were tunnels large enough for soldiers to run through standing up. Block houses were built of concrete and reinforced by steel rods. Walls were 3 feet thick, ceiling were six feet thick. Block houses were camoflaged with sand so it made it difficult for US Navy flyers to spot them from the air. General Kuribayashi even had an underground command center 75 feet below the surface. Mt Suribachi was even honeycombed. For the Japanese on Iwo this was the end of the line. There was no hope of rescue from the Imperial Fleet. The Japanese soldiers had plenty of food and ammunition underground to support them for up to five months On the Marines side, General Holland 'Howlin Mad' Smith commanded the 4th & 5th divisions. General Smith requested ten days of naval bombardment, however the Navy could only provide three days with Navy battleships, cruisers, and carrier aircraft. Even then overcast weather conditions shortened that time. On 19 Feb 1945 the Marines came ashore on a long black sandy beach on the southern side of the island. The 4th & 5th Marines fought their way from shore to shore cutting Iwo in half and separating Mt. Suribachi from the rest of the island. By night fall, the Marines were firmly ashore but suffered heavy losses of 2400 casualties, including 600 dead.