Battle of Eniwetok
On Feb. 17, 1944, the naval and aerial bombardment of Eniwetok Atoll began. Intelligence suggested that enemy defenses would be light, so the Navy did not use as much ordinance as they had at previous operations. Therefore, when two regiments of U.S. soldiers and Marines landed on Feb. 18, it took them 4 days to secure Eniwetok Island rather than the 24 hours they had anticipated. Nearly all of the Japanese and Korean defenders were killed.
Check out the Center for American Military History’s article on the Battle of Eniwetok.
Looks like you may be correct, Ken. From the Indiana Historical Society:
I’ll see if I can track down exactly who shot the photograph. Thanks for the note!
I believe the above photo was taken by photographer, John Buschemi. He was from Gary, IN.
If I remember correctly, this was the last–or one of the last photographs he took. He was killed shortly after this photo was taken.
My cousin, SGT James Thomas Lee, Company D, 2nd Battalion, 22nd Marine Regiment, led his machine gun section out of a Higgins boat as it hit Pary Island beach on February 22, 1944. He stepped on a land mine which exploded and amputated both legs just below the hips. He died within minutes in the arms of his twin brother, Corporal James Henry Lee.