Navy Medicine May-June 1944
Jennifer Mitchum

On 6 June, American and British forces, augmented by Canadians and other Commonwealth nations, token forces of Free French, Free Poles, and troops from other occupied nations, landed on the coast of Normandy in what would become the greatest amphibious operation in history.(1) Two U.S. divisions were put ashore in the western area in the Vierville-Colleville sector (Omaha Beach) and near St. Martin-de-Varreville (Utah Beach).

Troops landing on Omaha beach were met with heavy cross-fire coming from cleverly-concealed gun emplacements, machine gun nests and pill boxes. In addition, there were slit trenches, tank traps, and
anti-tank ditches. Between the high and low water levels on the beaches, the enemy had installed several rows
of underwater obstacles interconnected by barbed wire and thickly sown with mines.

Casualties were heavy but troops continued to move in toward the beach. By 1030, the entire landing force was committed, but enemy fire pinned them down on the beach. Nevertheless, invaders had suppressed enemy action on the beach by late afternoon, except for sniping and occasional artillery and mortar fire.

The American forces on Utah beach had a much easier time. They encountered limited small arms and artillery fire.

Navy Medicine

The Navy Medical Department's primary responsibilities were to provice medical service to all attached and embarked personnel between the ports of embarkation and the assault beaches; seaward
evacuation and hospitalization afloat within the combat zone; and medical services operating jointly with the ground force to all personnel in the beach area.

The first Navy Medical personnel landed at H-hour-plus-40 minutes. Initially, 10 medical sections were committed to Omaha and six to Utah. On Omaha Beach, where there were many casualties, doctors and corpsmen could only render first aid. On Utah Beach casualties were relatively light and medical units
were able to organize and establish medical facilities more quickly. By D-day-plus-1, all remaining beach
battalion medical sections had landed on designated beaches.(2)

Under enemy fire, medical personnel loaded special litter-equipped jeeps with as many as 200
casualties an hour and evacuated them to DUKWs (amphibious trucks), LCVPs (landing craft, vehicle,
personnel), and LCTs (landing craft, tank).(3) From these craft, wounded were transferred to British hospital carriers, APAs (attack transports), AKAs (attack cargo ships), and LSTs (landing ships, tank) and LCIs
(landing craft, infantry) for evacuation to England.

LSTs, however, were the primary evacuation vessels. On D-day, there were 103 LSTs in the task force. Of these, 54 had been structurally converted for casualty handling and the remaining 49 were augmented with additional medical personnel and supplies.(4) Basic structural changes included demountable brackets to accommodate 147 litters arranged in tiers 3 high--24 tiers along the starboard bulkhead and 25 along the port bulkhead of the tank deck. In an aft corner of the tank deck, a slop sink with a light was installed. In
addition, an electrical outlet, folding counter for portable sterilizer, and trays were all enclosed in a removable metal cage. There were also suitable stowage facilities for litters and bracket arms on lateral bulkheads. Moreover, two mounting brackets for operating lights were affixed over a mess table in the crew's mess room.

The medical complement aboard each of the 60 American LSTs consisted of two medical officers and
20 hospital corpsmen, and an Army surgical team of one surgeon and two assistants.(5) On return trips to England, doctors and corpsmen worked around the clock tending to wounded. The transport, USS Bayfield (APA-33), was sorely taxed with casualties. On one given night, 307 casualties were brought aboard the ship.(6)

Medical Facilities In England

Medical facilities in England were adequate for caring for the influx of patients coming from French beaches. Most patients had received first-aid on evacuation vessels and needed definitive treatment. On
D-day, a few casualties arrived at Portland and then at Southampton on D+2 days. The heaviest casualty loads came in to both ports on the third and fourth day. By D-day-plus-22, approximately 12,834 patients had been unloaded at Portland and 6,065 at Southampton.(7) Medical facilities at Plymouth and Falmouth received fewer casualties. Whenever feasible, Navy casualties were sent to the 1,000-bed U.S. Navy Base Hospital #12 in Netley, England near Southampton. As many as 300 patients were admitted to the hospital daily.(8)

Saipan

Coming on the heels of Normandy, another major amphibious operation was about to begin. In the Pacific, attention focused on the Marianas. The island chain, 1,100 miles south of Tokyo, would provide advanced bases for the attack on Iwo Jima and airfields from which the new B-29 "Superfortress" Army Air Force bombers could attack Japan.

Key to the enemy defense of the Marianas was Saipan where the Japanese had systematically prepared heavy fortifications since the end of World War I. In February, a task force under ADM Marc Mitscher had bombarded the island. D-day was set for 15 June.

In preparation for Saipan, doctors and corpsmen at Maui, HI, received training in field sanitation,
tropical diseases, care and transportation of wounded, and first aid. The average medical battalion consisted of 50 corpsmen, 9 bandsmen (to be utilized as litter-bearers), 2 drivers, and 2 medical officers.(9) In addition, 27 dental officers were attached to several units and served in several roles including sanitation, mess, water
supply, and evacuation officer.(10)

Over 800 ships transported troops from Hawaii, the Solomons, and the west coast of CONUS to Saipan. It was the largest fleet yet assembled in the Pacific.(11) En route, medical personnel attempted to keep troops healthy. Nevertheless, sanitation related problems resulted in several ailments among the men. For example, improper laundry care caused many personnel fungus infections. Moreover, over 90 percent of the troops in the Fourth Marine Division had mild to severe diarrhea at one time or another.(12) Similarly, dysentery was a problem on some vessels. On USS Birmingham (CL-62), 244 persons suffered with bacillary dysentery 5 days before going ashore.(13) To reduce the incident, crew members sterilized mess gear and washed their hands with antiseptic hand solution. Moreover, medical personnel inspected food handlers. Doctors and corpsmen treated serious dysentery cases with sulfa drugs, penicillin, intravenous glucose, and blood transfusions. By 14 June, however, ambulatory patients were able to man their battle stations.

The Assault

After days of intense bombing, amphibious tractors wallowed in toward the reef and troops
disembarked. Despite the pre-bombardment, approximately 32,000 defenders welcomed marines with heavy artillery, mortar, and machine gun fire. Although many of the invaders were hit, 8,000 men managed to go ashore within 20 minutes.(14)

Accompanying assault troops were company aid men who, with their seabags full of medical supplies, trampled over bodies and supply wreckage to render first aid to the fallen. Under heavy enemy fire, doctors and corpsmen stopped hemorrhages, applied sulfa drugs, dressings, splints, administered morphine, and then
carried wounded back to battalion aid stations that had been set up in trenches and dugouts. From there, they transferred wounded to collecting and evacuation stations.

Navy medical personnel often endangered their own lives to treat wounded. For example, corpsman Blaine Rideout and LCDR Bristol Nelson, MC, journeyed, unprotected, down an open beach to tend to two men that had been shot by a sniper.(15) Invading forces were confined to the beach for hours and had to fight for every inch of it. Before morning, the marines had suffered 1,750 (estimated 350 dead, the rest wounded)
casualties.(16) Medical personnel were also among the casualties. In the Second Battalion, Sixth Marines, a mortar shell hit the battalion surgeon in the first 10 minutes ashore. Within the first 24 hours, two corpsmen were killed and 10 were wounded. One pharmacist's mate was killed the first night while manning a machine gun.(17)

It took the Americans 3 days to attain their objective for day 1, a beach head 1 mile deep and 4 miles wide.(18) Casualties were heavy the first 5 days, and beach medical facilities were sorely taxed. From D-day to D+3 days, one shore party evacuation station treated and evacuated 1,009 casualties.(19) Jeep ambulances loaded with wounded were often hit by artillery fire. At night troops maintained a strict black out policy. Initially, shore medical parties lacked a portable light-proof shelter and had to tend wounds the best they could
using only the pale gleam of poncho-covered flashlights.(20)

Medical beach parties, comprised of one medical officer and 8 hospital corpsmen from each troop carrier, connected the medical care ashore with the medical treatment afloat.(21) Wearing blue helmets with red crosses painted on the front, back, and sides, medical beach parties sometimes labored up to 48 hours
nonstop rendering rudimentary care and setting up a rough casualty evacuation system.(22)

By D+3 days, the Japanese stopped trying to halt the American advance and retreated inland, exploiting the defensive advantage provided by Saipan's rough terrain of limestone rocks and gorges. By 20 June, the Americans reached a lightly damaged airfield at Aslito and isolated the southern end of the island. By this time, medical companies had come ashore and were establishing field hospitals and other facilities. Company C of the Second Medical Battalion, landed near Charon Kanoa and set up a field hospital in what had been a geisha house. Inside were rooms with billiard pool tables, and little bunks or booths. The innovative medical personnel quickly transformed the house into a hospital. "I don't know if they were entertainment for the men
and the girls, but there was an area there with little cubbyholes with beds like little bunks, and so they used that place for the wards," said PhM1c Laddie J. Vacek, X-ray technician for the company.(23)

Vacek set up an X-ray room in a little building which had bullet holes throughout. "I had to make my own darkroom and set up a portable generator and the X-ray machine," said Vacek.(24) By nightfall, C
company was prepared to perform surgery. In the early stages of the operation, the field hospital was the only
definitive surgery center.(25) The Army's 97th Portable Surgical Team joined the hospital shortly after it was established. From D+3 days through D+11 days, 398 Army and Marine personnel were admitted to the
hospital and 46 major surgical operations were performed.(26)

The Second Marine Division set up a 300-bed hospital in a Japanese radio station building made of steel and concrete and surrounded by 10-foot revetments.(27) The day the division hospital opened, 37
casualties were treated; 58 the next day, and 159 on the third day.(28) Those with minor wounds were housed in tents. In surgical huts, doctors performed several procedures while corpsmen treated shock victims,

performed minor debridement, and applied dressings, and casts. Strategically located near the main road
network, the division hospital was easily accessible from the front lines and beach evacuation stations.

From the time the hospital opened its doors until D+35 days, 5,156 persons had been admitted; of these 3,408 returned to duty, 1,372 were evacuated and 71 died.(29) Later, medical companies at Charon Kanoa joined the division hospital raising the bed total to about 1,000.(30)

Disease

Battle casualties comprised nearly two-thirds of those admitted for medical treatment. The others
suffered from diseases, illnesses, and combat fatigue. In the Fourth Marine Division, there were 409 cases of dengue fever, 680 cases of dysentery, 26 cases of fungus infection, 414 cases of combat fatigue, 169 cases of
psychoneurosis, and 879 admissions from other sickness--a total of 2,577. Because of the heavy casualty
load, only those with severe cases were hospitalized. Of those admitted to hospital facilities were 157
members of the Navy Medical Department for dengue, dysentery, fungus infection, combat fatigue,
psychoneurosis, and other diseases.(31) Continuous shelling by the enemy frayed the nerves of the
officers and men to the breaking point. On D+4 days, two medical companies were used to specifically treat combat fatigue. Navy medical personnel brought weary patients to the companies to be examined and reequipped prior to returning to duty.

Evacuation

Attack transports (APAs), AKAs, and hospital ships provided the only definitive treatment facilities until field hospitals could be established. Transports bore the brunt of the initial casualties with a collective 3,600 wounded aboard by the evening of D+2 days.(32)

On D+11 days transports sailed for rear bases. Those vessels having less seriously wounded aboard remained in the area so that the men could finish recovering at shore facilities and return to duty. Once
transports departed, evacuation became critical until the island was secured. With departing transports went the vessels and personnel needed to care for the steady rising casualty numbers.

Hospital ships Solace (AH-5), Bountiful (AH-9), and Relief (AH-1) arrived on D+3 days. Although surgical facilities were adequate to handle casualties, ventilation aboard the ships was poor. The captain of the Solace stressed the importance of air-conditioning aboard the hospital ships writing, "Working as we have done in the tropics, the heat and humidity of the operating rooms is debilitating to the patients and reduces the efficiency of the personnel."(33) He added that it was difficult to maintain good aseptic technique under such adverse conditions. Overall, 9,546 casualties would be evacuated from Saipan by sea.(34)

Air evacuation began on D+9 days but had limited success. Although 860 casualties were evacuated via air to the Marshalls, a number died en route because there were no flight surgeons or other medical
attendants to care for them.(35)

Conclusion

By 5 July, surviving Japanese defenders were trapped on the north end with the sea and cliffs to their backs. The next day, the Japanese commanders committed suicide in the caves of northern Saipan. The day after, 3,000 Japanese survivors made their last mad charge and burst through the shaky line of the 27th Army Division screaming and many armed with grenades and bayonets.(36)

By 9 July, significant organized resistance had ended with 23,811 Japanese troops dead and 1,780 taken prisoner.(37) Afraid that the Americans would treat them harshly, nearly 8,000 Japanese civilians plunged off the cliffs on the northern end of Saipan following the banzai charge. "For a number of days, there was the sickening sight of bodies of men, women, and children floating by our ship," recalled Dr. Robert A. Conard, junior medical officer of the USS Montpelier (CL-57).(38) Fortunately, another 15,000 civilians
surrendered. In all about 30,000 Japanese had died on Saipan. The Americans lost 3,426 and 13,099
wounded.(39)

The fact that Navy medical personnel went to life threatening extremes to aid wounded is reflected in the numbers of those that fell. In the Fourth Marine Division, 161 doctors and hospital corpsmen were
casualties.(40) The battalion medical section of the First Battalion, Twenty-ninth Regiment suffered 27 battle
casualties out of a complement of 40. Both medical officers were wounded, but despite their wounds they stayed on duty for hours until relieved. Three members of the section received the Navy Cross; two were awarded posthumously.(41)

Further Back in the War

Return to WWII History index page

Foward in to the War

References

1. Blassingame W. Medical Corps Heroes of World War II, p 97.

2. The History of the Medical Department of the United States Navy in World War II, Vol. I: A Narrative and Pictorial Volume, p 122.

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid., p 124.

5. Dowling GB. Report, Medical Services in the Normandy Invasion, p 5-6.

6. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap. 17,p19.

7. The History of the Medical Department of the United States Navy in World War II, Vol. I: A Narrative and Pictorial Volume, p125.

8. Ibid., p 147.

9. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap. 8, p 6.

10. Ibid.

11. Ibid., p 2.

12. Ibid., p 9.

13. Ibid., p 39.

14. Van der Vat D. The Pacific Campaign, p 320.

15. Blassingame W, p 78.

16. The History of the Medical Department in the United States Navy in World War II, Vol. I: A Narrative and Pictorial Volume, p176 & 178.

17. Ibid., p 176.

18. Van der Vat D, p 320.

19. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap 8, p14.

20. Ibid., p 15.

21. Ibid., p 12.

22. Ibid.

23. Vacek L, PhM1c, HC, USN. Interview by Jan K. Herman, 27 September 1993. BUMED Archives, p 6.

24. Ibid.

25. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap.8, p25.

26. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap. 8, p 25. The History of the Medical Department of the United States Navy in World War II, Vol. I: A Narrative nad Pictorial Volume, p 177.

27. The History of the Medical Department in the United States Navy in World War II, Vol. I: A Narrative and Pictorial Volume, p178.

28. Ibid., p 179.

29. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap. 8,p26.

30. The History of the Medical Department in the United States Navy in World War II, Vol. I: A Narrative and Pictorial Volume, p179.

31. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap. 8, p 29.

32. Ibid, p 33.

33. Ibid., p 36.

34. Ibid., p 24.

35. Ibid., p 19.

36. Van der Vat D, p 327.

37. Ibid., p 328.

38. Conard RA. Memoirs of a Navy Doctor Aboard A Cruiser in the Pacific (1942-1944), p 16.

39. Van der Vat D, p 328.

40. U.S. Navy Medical Department Administrative History, 1941-1945, Vol. I: Narrative History, chap. 8,p29.

41. The History of the Medical Department of the United States Navy in World War II, Vol. I: A Narrative and Pictorial Volume, p180.