KOBE HARBOR NOW FREED OF MINES
Navy Completes Job To Open Large Jap Port
KOBE -- The clearing of Japan's second largest port Kobe, in one of the Navy's largest minesweeping operations in Japanese waters has been completed. Directed by Capt. T. F. Donohue, commander, Task Group 52.6, the sixty fleet units began sweeping the Osaka Bay area for the mines five weeks ago. Primary objective was Kobe Harbor. B-29's had succeeded in closing the port to heavy shipping during the war by planting mines during raids. A number of ships were sunk in and around the breakwater, complicating the sweeping tasks. The Kobe-Osaka Bay area had been planted with mines and a channel had to be swept into Kobe. This was accomplished by a unit under the command of Lt. Cmdr. C. D. Sweet, USNR.
Danger Still There
Within the harbor, the operation was conducted by Lt. Cmdr. R. V. Lange, USNR, who stated that most of the credit for the swift and accurate sweeping should go to the small flotilla of 36 wooden hulled 136-foot YMS type ships. For the four officers and 30 men aboard each ship, V-J day meant an improvement of working conditions but not of danger. Final Navy check on the effectiveness of the YMS fleet was made by one of the special "Guinea Pig" ships. This is a large, specially equipped empty transport. All maintenance and control operations are carried on from special locations topside of the ship. Larger naval vessels will be entering the port within a few days. Kobe is expected to become the largest supply harbor for the 8th Army units located in Southern Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu.
(The YMS became AMc's of which USS Medrick AMc was one).
Although the mines kept the big Jap ships from making it into port, we discovered when we went ashore that the manufacturing of ammunition was done from house to house. It was started in one house then move next door where an additional piece of work was added to the rifle or other instrument of war. When it reached the last house on the block it was completed then put in small rowing crafts and hauled out beyond the harbor to waiting warships. We bombed the factories but they kept up the manufacturing at home.
John H. Burns
Transcribed and formatted for HTML by Patrick Clancey