Oral History Interview with Carl Crandall, September 15, 2011 Page: 18

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Carl Crandall. Crandall joined the Navy at age 17. After basic training at Great Lakes, he was trained on running ship’s boilers. Crandall was then assigned to USS Warrick (AKA-89) as a third class watertender. While running the boilers, he would occasionally clean the insides, which required holding his breath for up to three minutes. Crandall was in battle zones in the Philippines for a year and suffered hearing damage from a kamikaze attack on a nearby destroyer. While ashore, he traded with the natives to acquire fresh coconuts. At Iwo Jima, Crandall sat atop the smokestack and watched the flag being raised on Mount Suribachi. After the war, Crandall participated in disarmament of the Japanese by dumping their arms and ammunition into the ocean. While in Japan, he was surprised by the hospitality of the Japanese, having been invited into their homes. Crandall returned to the States after occupation duty and returned home to finish high school.