Lookout Air Raids

Lookout Air Raids
Part of theAmerican theaterandPacific theaterofWorld War II
Lookout air raid schema
Date September 9 and September 29, 1942 Location Oregon Mountains,nearBrookings,Pacific Ocean Result Japanese failure to igniteforest fires
Belligerents
United States	Japan
Commanders and leaders
Keith V. Johnson	Tagami Akiji Nobuo Fujita
Strength
1 patrol offire lookouts	Sea: 1submarine Air: 1aircraft

TheLookout Air Raidswere minor but historicJapaneseair raids that occurred in the mountains ofOregon,several miles outsideBrookingsduringWorld War II.

On September 9, 1942, a JapaneseYokosuka E14YGlenfloatplane,launched from a Japanese submarine, dropped twoincendiary bombswith the intention of starting aforest fire.However, with the efforts of a patrol offire lookoutsand weather conditions not amenable to a fire, the damage done by the attack was minor.The attack was the first time thecontiguous United Stateswas bombed by an enemy aircraft.It was also the second time the continentalUnited Stateswas attacked by enemy aircraft during World War II, the first being thebombing of Dutch Harborthree months earlier.

Lookout Air Raids

The Japanese Submarine I-26, a sister vessel to the I-25. Note the aircraft hangar immediately forward of the conning tower.

On Wednesday morning, September 9, 1942, thesubmarineI-25,under the command ofLieutenant CommanderAkiji Tagami, surfaced west ofCape Blanco.The submarine launched a "Glen"Yokosuka E14Yfloatplane, flown byWarrant OfficerNobuo FujitaandPetty OfficerOkuda Shoji, with a load of twoincendiary bombsof 76 kilograms (168 lb) each.

Howard "Razz" Gardner spotted and reported the incoming "Glen" from his fire lookout tower onMount Emilyin theSiskiyou National Forest.

Although Razz did not see the bombing, he saw the smoke plume and reported the fire to the dispatch office. He was instructed to hike to the fire to see what suppression he could do. Dispatch also sent USFS Fire Lookout Keith V. Johnson from the nearby Bear Wallow Lookout Tower.Fujita dropped two bombs, one on Wheeler Ridge on Mount Emily inOregon.The location of the other bomb is unknown. The Wheeler Ridge bomb started a small fire 16 km (9.9 mi) due east ofBrookings.

The two men proceeded to the location and were able to keep the fire under control. Only a few small scattered fires were started because the bombs were not dropped from the correct height.The men stayed on scene and worked through the night keeping the fires contained. In the morning, afire crewarrived to help. A recent rain storm had kept the area wet, which helped the fire lookouts contain the blaze.

Aftermath

Nobuo Fujitastanding by hisYokosuka E14Y"Glen" seaplane.

A full investigation was launched by theFederal Bureau of Investigation,which resulted in locating several bomb fragments. The story was reported in several newspapers on September 10, 1942.Lieut. Gen.John L. DeWitt,the area commander announced,

TheWestern Defense Commandis investigating the circumstances surrounding the discovery on Sept. 9 of fragments of what appears to have been an incendiary bomb. These fragments were found by personnel of the United States Forestry Service near Mt. Emily nine miles northeast of Brookings, Or. Markings of the bomb fragments indicated that the missile was of Japanese origin.

The floatplane carried two bombs. Both were dropped, according to the Japanese records, but no trace has yet been found of the second bomb.One of the bombs left a foot-deep crater.Fujita and his observer made a second attack on September 29, again causing only negligible damage.

Postwar

Twenty years later, Fujita was invited back to Brookings. Before he made the trip theJapanese governmentwas assured he would not be tried as awar criminal.In Brookings, Fujita served as Grand Marshal for the local Azalea Festival.At the festival, Fujita presented his family's 400-year-oldsamurai swordto the city as a symbol of reconciliation. Fujita made a number of additional visits to Brookings, serving as an "informal ambassador of peace and friendship".Impressed by his welcome in the United States, in 1985 Fujita invited three students from Brookings to Japan. During the visit of theBrookings-Harbor High Schoolstudents to Japan, Fujita received a dedicatory letter from an aide ofPresident Ronald Reagan"with admiration for your kindness and generosity". Fujita returned to Brookings in 1990, 1992, and 1995. In 1992 he planted a tree at the bomb site as a gesture of peace. In 1995, he moved the samurai sword from the Brookings City Hall into the new library's display case. He was made an honorary citizen of Brookings several days before his death on September 30, 1997, at the age of 85.In October 1998, his daughter, Yoriko Asakura, buried some of Fujita's ashes at the bomb site.

See also

• Amerikabomber
• Bombardment of Fort Stevens
• Fu-Go balloon bomb
• Operation K

External links

• Los Angeles Timesnews story of September 15, 1942
• Trail Dedication at Japanese Bombing Site Set– U.S. Forest Service