DAMAGED SHIPS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 65, Issue 195, 31 May 1945, Page 5

DAMAGED SHIPS

UNITED STATES NAVY. REPAIRS CAUSING CONCERN..THOUSANDS OF WORKERS NEEDED. (N.Z. Press Association —Copyright.) (Rec.* 12.5.), WASHINGTON, May SO. The Navy Secretary (Mr James V. Forrestal) told a press" conference that the Navy was frankly and openly worried over the problem of repairing ships damaged in the Pacific. There was urgent need for 15,000 shipyard workers on the west coast, where hun-. dreds of workers leave their jobs each week. , Mr Forrestal said that repairs to the aircraft-carrier Franklin will take nine months. Some cruisers require six months and destroyers three months. Damage to combat ships had.increased recently, largely due to the operations around the Japanese homeland, and the activities of suicide planes, 150 of which had recently attacked two destroyers continuously .. for 90 .minutes. One destroyer shot ' down 23 and the second 19, but both, received hits before the attack was repelled, Mr Forrestal said that naval casualties from March 15 to March 23 on Okinawa were 4270, indicating the extent of ship damage suffered in that area. Some damaged ships had already been announced, and others will be announced in the near future,-, hut the Navy was most anxious that the Japanese should not know the_ total number or types of vessels hot operating at any particular time. The Tokio radio says that five RearAdmirals—Murata, Ozaki, Inouye, Okano and Ddawara—and two viceadmirals, including Hayakawa, had died in battle. (: <} r -> The Associated Press- commented that more than 100 Japanese admirals _ had now been reported dead within a year. ■ -U