In action of Okinawa on March 19th , 1945, the USS Franklin was struck by two bombs from a Japanese dive bomber, the second of which ignited a fire that triggered ammunition, bombs and rockets. Within moments, 798 sailors were dead, radio and communications were destroyed, and the Franklin lay dead in the water with a thirteen degree list, fifty miles of the coast of Japan, easy prey, and almost fatally wounded. Taken in tow by the Pittsburgh the Franklin eventually managed to achieve a speed of fourteen knots and limped back to Brooklyn Yard for full repairs. These story of this amazing feat is told here for the first time in the survivor's own words with details that amaze: Lieutenant Donald Gary who discovered 300 men trapped in a collapsed section and led them to safety through a maze of burning tunnels and wreckage; Chaplin Joseph O'Callaghan who organized fire-fighting crews, first-aid, search and rescue parties, and the captain wanted to court-martial those blown overboard by the explosion for cowardice and desertion! This is a book full of the raw fear and drive to survive that military and naval readers look for.