Wreck of USS Juneau (CL-52)

USS Juneau was the second member of the Atlanta Class of Light Cruisers in service with the US Navy during the Second World War, and following her February 1942 commissioning departed immediately for the Pacific Theatre.

After lending her powerful anti-aircraft fire to screen US Carriers in action against Japanese bombers and fighters before and during the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands, the Juneau was assigned to escort a supply convoy from New Caledonia to Guadalcanal where US Marines had established a beachhead and secured the Japanese airfield only days prior. Arriving off Guadalcanal on early on November 12th and screening the transport ships as they unloaded, the Juneau's crew shot down six Japanese bombers before the transports had finished their work and began to withdraw in the afternoon. It was around this time that US forces were alerted by recon planes that a large Japanese force of warships was heading south through the body of water known as 'the Slot' towards Guadalcanal, with obvious intentions of disrupting the landings ashore. US Rear Admiral Callaghan ordered every US warship in the area to form up to meet the approaching Japanese ships and the USS Juneau complied after leading her convoy of transports into open waters.

The US force, consisting of USS Juneau, her sistership USS Atlanta and three other Cruisers and eight Destroyers formed into a battle line around sunset of November 12th, with Atlanta & Juneau bringing up the front and rear of the Cruiser line, and prepared to meet the Japanese force which was estimated to arrive around midnight.

At approximately 00:30hrs (12:30am) the radar screens on the lead Cruisers and Destroyers began to pick up the first signs of the Japanese fleet, which consisted of two Battleships, one Cruiser and eleven Destroyers, all heading to shell Henderson field on Guadalcanal. Going to battle stations, the crew on the Juneau strained to sight the Japanese ships in the dark, but rain squalls between the two fleets prevented visual contact for over an hour while the both closed directly at each other. At approximately 01:30hrs (1:30am) the crew on the lead US Destroyer, USS Cushing, finally made visual contact with the Japanese fleet, which was emerging in large numbers on both sides of the American battle line from the darkness of a rain squall line only 3,000 yards from the US force. Both Admirals withheld orders to commence firing as the Japanese fleet, scattered into three groups by the foul weather, enveloped the US battle line. The crew of the Juneau began to target their deck guns and torpedo batteries on the ships now appearing to their Northwest, and waited for the order from the flagship USS San Francisco to open fire. The order never came. At 01:48hrs the Japanese Destroyer Akatsuki lit her searchlights onto the USS Atlanta, Juneau's sistership steaming four ships ahead of Juneau, which immediately opened fire and was followed shortly thereafter by every ship on both sides.

At this point, there were enemy ships on both sides of the American Battle Line, and Juneau was ordered to fire on ships to her Starboard (right) side. The American battle line quickly disintegrated as Japanese ships began to cut through the formation and US ships were forced into evasive maneuvers to avoid collisions with both enemy and friendly ships, all the while firing and taking fire from point blank range in a battle which was later likened to 'a bar room brawl with the lights shot out'. Gun crews targeted two Japanese Destroyers racing down the remnants of the battle line and took them under fire, however the Destroyer Yudachi struck first and managed to hit Juneau directly amidships on her Port (left) side with a single 'Long Lance' torpedo. The resulting explosion lifted the 6,000 ton Cruiser clear out of the water, broke her keel and knocked out her engines. The Juneau immediately took a sharp Port list and went dark as damage control parties raced to save their ship. Fortunately, the battle left the Juneau behind and her crew were able to check the water ingress to her severely damaged hull and got her Starboard engine running, enabling the crippled Cruiser to slowly withdraw from the battle area to more sheltered waters.

Morning of November 13th found the Juneau down 13ft by her bow and still only able to operate one of her engines, however her crew had made enough repairs to allow her to sail on an even keel to the rear US base at Espiritu Santo for major repairs. Departing Guadalcanal around midmorning on November 13th with USS San Francisco and USS Helena; two other Cruisers damaged in the battle, the three ships slowly made her way into the relative safety of open waters, but were sighted by the Japanese Submarine I-26 as they entered the Solomon Sea. The Japanese sub trailed the three ships until they were far enough out into open waters to be out of range land based allied aircraft and lined up its shot. The I-26 fired a spread of three torpedoes at the USS Juneau, which managed to avoid two despite the heavy damage to her hull and only being able to steer with one engine and rudder, however the third torpedo found its mark and impacted the Juneau in nearly the exact same spot as the torpedo from the Yudachi the night before. The severely weakened hull gave way and the Juneau split in half and sank in less than a minute, taking all but about 100 members of her 650 man crew with her to the bottom. Those that managed to get off the sinking ship watched in horror as the escorting Cruisers, fearful of also being torpedoed if they stopped, continued on their course leaving the survivors to fend for themselves. In the eight days that followed before rescue finally came, all but ten of the men had died from their wounds, exposure or shark attack.

The sinking of the Juneau gained particular notoriety as the five Sullivan Brothers, championed by the US War Department and Department of the Navy to help in recruiting drives, were all killed in the sinking; three by the second torpedo attack and two by exposure awaiting rescue.

USS Juneau, despite being only nine months old at the time of her loss, was awarded four Battle Stars for her World War Two service.

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