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RE: Question re Pearl Harbor
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2011 5:09 am
by Apollo11
Hi all,
ORIGINAL: Reg
ORIGINAL: Apollo11
BTW, were there any similar incident during WWII Pacific where similar large oil tanks were targeted / attacked?
Image copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
ID number: OG3048
Photographer: Harrison, John Thomas
Object type: Black & white
Physical description: Black & white
Collection: Photograph
Description: BALIKPAPAN, BORNEO. C. 1945-07. AN AERIAL PHOTOGRAPH OF WRECKED OIL STORAGE TANKS.
Permalink: http://cas.awm.gov.au/item/OG3048
ORIGINAL: Reg
Probably not the primary target....
Note the proximity of other undamaged storage tanks.
Image copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
ID number: 027348
Photographer: Sanders, William Charles
Object type: Black & white - Film original negative nitrate other
Collection: Photograph
Description: DARWIN, NT. 1942-10-19. AERIAL VIEW OF BURNT OUT OIL TANKS, SET ON FIRE IN A BOMBING RAID ON 1942-06-16.
Permalink: http://cas.awm.gov.au/item/027348
Thanks Reg!
Leo "Apollo11"
RE: Question re Pearl Harbor
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2011 1:32 pm
by oldman45
ORIGINAL: RevRick
ORIGINAL: oldman45
They actually did a great job burning the fuel sitting in the tanks at Polesti, what they didn't do was cause enough damage to completely shut the plant down. That was the disappointment of the raid.
There was a tank fire in Charleston SC in the late 80's, its not a really fair comparison because it was a gasoline storage facility. Even with the help of the AF and Navy it still took them over 2 days to put the fire out. The point I am making is, if there was a 3rd raid that went after the tank farm, they could have got it burning. Shrapnel causing leaks and direct hits on a couple of tanks and sooner or later there would be enough build up of fumes that something would ignite. The nightmare is if there is aluminium around and the fire is hot enough to get it burning. [u]The Brits learned the hardway what happens when ships with aluminium superstructures start to burn. We had many training sessions to learn how to combat shipboard fires involving aluminium. [/u]
Go back and check out the wreck of the Belknap when she collided with the JFK in 1975... Lost most of her superstructure because, as were almost all ships at that time, the superstructure was made of aluminum. Nasty stuff onboard ships..
I didn't realize the Belknap had an aluminum superstructure. Our training on those kind of fires kicked into high gear after the Brit ships were hit in the Falklands.