{"id":5357,"date":"2015-05-20T04:00:24","date_gmt":"2015-05-20T08:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/?p=5357"},"modified":"2015-05-19T23:22:39","modified_gmt":"2015-05-20T03:22:39","slug":"the-roar-of-the-fire-was-like-thunder-and-on-the-flight-deck-and-hangar-decks-were-the-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2015\/05\/20\/the-roar-of-the-fire-was-like-thunder-and-on-the-flight-deck-and-hangar-decks-were-the-dead\/","title":{"rendered":"“On the flight deck and hangar decks were the dead”"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The <\/a>
The USS Franklin lists dangerously to starboard while crew members gather on the ship’s port side. Crew members on the cruiser Sante Fe watch in the foreground. (US Navy photograph) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"An <\/a>
An explosion sends debris flying onto the deck of the Franklin. (US Navy photograph) <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wounded <\/a>
Wounded are taken aboard the Sante Fe. (US Navy photograph) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Smoke <\/a>
Smoke pours from the wounded ship. (US Navy photograph) <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The heavily listing ship, as seen from the cruiser Pittsburgh. (US Navy photograph) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"John <\/a>
John Steffora in his Navy uniform. (Steve Mellon\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"This <\/a>
This article in the Post-Gazette details some of John Steffora’s experiences on the Franklin. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Antoinette <\/a>
Antoinette and John Steffora at their 50th anniversary. (Courtesy of Thomas Steffora) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Front <\/a>
Front page of the Post-Gazette on May 18, 1945. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\nSeventy years ago this week, a front-page picture presented Post-Gazette readers<\/a> with proof that the world was truly off kilter. Even today, the image remains a shocking reminder of the apocalyptic nature of a war that, by 1945, had enveloped the globe for more than five years.<\/p>\n

The picture\u00a0shows the aircraft carrier USS Franklin burning on the open sea and listing dangerously to starboard. Will she overturn? Hundreds of crewmen crowd together on the ship\u2019s port side. They appear as tiny and helpless as ants trying to balance a see-saw.<\/p>\n

An accompanying story, however, details how these seemingly powerless men accomplished one of the war\u2019s most amazing feats of grit and courage.<\/p>\n

On March 19, 1945, the Franklin had steamed to within 50 miles of the Japanese coast and was preparing to launch an early morning attack. More than 30 bombers and fighters, loaded with fuel and ordinance, packed the ship\u2019s flight and hangar decks.<\/p>\n

It was just past 7 a.m.\u00a0and seaman John Steffora was beginning a shift at one of the Franklin\u2019s gun stations. Steffora was a Pittsburgher, the son of a steelworker from Carnegie. He strapped on his life vest and looked up at the overcast sky. Suddenly, a plane with square-tipped wings emerged from the clouds. Steffora\u00a0recognized it instantly a Japanese bomber.<\/p>\n

The plane went into a dive. Closer and closer it came, until Steffora\u00a0could see the pilot\u2019s face, twisted in\u00a0concentration or perhaps fear.<\/p>\n

Two 500-pound bombs penetrated the Franklin\u2019s flight deck. The blast flung some sailors overboard, tore others to pieces and ignited fully loaded planes waiting to take off. The Franklin\u2019s deck became an inferno.<\/p>\n

Thick black smoke smothered Steffora\u2019s his gun mount. He raced to another gun and prepared for torpedo planes he was certain would attack.<\/p>\n

Soon, however, Steffora realized fire had became a serious threat to the ship\u2019s survival, so he volunteered to help fight the flames. The ship’s chaplain grabbed a fire hose and shouted at Steffora, \u201cSon, let\u2019s go.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was terrible,\u201d Steffora told the Post-Gazette<\/a>. \u201cExploding bombs and rockets from our own fully loaded planes began to plow through the bulkheads. Flames shot high as the gasoline sprayed out of broken pipes. The roar of the fire was like thunder, and on the flight deck and hangar decks were the dead who had been killed by the concussion.<\/p>\n

\u201cPilots were burned in their planes as they struggled to free themselves from the cockpits where they were trapped. Others threw themselves into the sea to escape the heat.\u201d<\/p>\n

After one immense explosion, aircraft engines with propellers attached and pieces of bodies fell onto the deck like hail on a roof, according to one witness.<\/p>\n