Today marks the 50th anniversary of the worst single ship isaster in the history of the U.S. Navy. The USS Indianapolis, after dropping ff the atomic bomb, was torpedoed in the South Pacific. 1,100 men were thrown nto the water, but no rescue operations were mounted, due to bureaucratic issteps. For five days, the men battled sharks, fatigue, fear and sunstroke efore they were finally spotted and picked up. Only 316 survived. Afterwards, he captain of the ship was court-martialed and publicly humiliated. He ventually committed suicide. We hear from Jim O'Donnell, one of the remaining urvivors of the Indianapolis, and Dan Kurzman, author of "Fatal Voyage, The inking of the USS Indianapolis." (MacMillan & Pocket Books).
Copyright 1995 NPR