Machinist Mate 2nd Class Martin Shew served on the USS Arizona, a battleship that suffered insurmountable damage during the Attack on Pearl Harbor. Shew was on his way back to the Arizona when the attack began. Before he could reach the ship, a Japanese bomb detonated the ship’s magazines, causing a massive explosion on board and dealing significant damage. If Shew had been at his post at the time of the explosion, he would have been killed.

Seeing that the Arizona was unsalvageable, Shrew was enlisted to help fight fires along the shore for two hours. After that, he helped carry the dead and dying to a mess hall that was being used as an emergency hospital.

Editor’s Note: Shew was a Machinist Mate 2nd Class at the time of the attack. It is unclear what rank he had reached by retirement. 

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