[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 22]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 30445]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   IN HONOR OF NAVY VETERAN AND PEARL HARBOR SURVIVOR ERNAL UNDERWOOD

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. CHRIS CANNON

                                of utah

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 7, 2007

  Mr. CANNON. Madam Speaker, as Veteran's Day approaches, I rise in 
strong support of all who have ever worn the uniform. From the fields 
of Bunker Hill to the streets of Baghdad, and everywhere in between, 
American service members represent the very best of our Nation and 
deserve more than we can ever repay. But today I want to pay particular 
tribute to a resident of my district who is part of an elite club--
Ernal Underwood is one of twelve Pearl Harbor survivors currently 
living in the State of Utah.
  Mr. Underwood joined the Navy on January 7, 1941. Less than 1 year 
later Mr. Underwood found himself docked at Pearl Harbor on the USS 
Helena. On December 7, 1941 an aerial torpedo struck the USS Helena 
while Mr. Underwood was climbing down a ladder below the deck, on his 
way to write his wife a letter.
  After his ship was hit, Mr. Underwood immediately ran to his battle 
station, picked up his weapon, and engaged the enemy. Mr. Underwood 
fired until his gun became too hot. After he ran to fetch a bucket of 
water in order to cool it down, on the way back to his station, he said 
he had an impression to ``stop.'' A few seconds later fire from an 
enemy aircraft pelted the cement on both sides of him. Fortunately, Mr. 
Underwood came away unscathed. Mr. Underwood's best friend was not so 
lucky. Later, Ernal Underwood was asked to identify the charred body of 
his best friend, Benjamin Vasser. Mr. Underwood found his buddy badly 
burned, but alive enough to blink a response to him. That was the last 
time Mr. Underwood would see his friend alive.
  Less than 2 years later on July 6, 1943, Ernal Underwood found 
himself in the middle of the Kula Gulf battle in the South Pacific. 
That day the USS Helena suffered three direct hits from enemy 
torpedoes. The ship broke into three pieces and the order to abandon 
ship was given. Despite three broken vertebrates, a broken ankle, and a 
large gash in his head, Mr. Underwood treaded water through the night 
and into the next day before being rescued by a Navy destroyer.
  Madam Speaker, it is because of heroes like Ernal Underwood that we 
enjoy the freedom we have today. Men who asked nothing from their 
country, but gave everything. We owe them more than words, medals, or 
honors. What we as a Nation can do to say thank you to these heroes is 
leave our country and our world better than we found it. I ask that my 
colleagues join with me in honoring Ernal Underwood and thousands of 
veterans like him whose sacrifice left a world freer, stronger, and 
more prosperous.

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