1979 — Oct 19, Fuel bladder rupture and barracks fire, USMC Camp Fuji, Japan — 13
–13 Leatherneck.com. “Camp Fuji Fire-24 Years Ago Today.” 10-19-2003.
–13 Stars and Stripes. “Camp Fuji to honor 13 servicemembers…died in 1979 fire.” 10-14-04
–13 Wikipedia. “Typhoon Tip.” 2-16-2012 modification.
Narrative Information
Leatherneck.com: “…the tragedy of October 19, 1979! While stationed at Camp Fuji for training 13 Marines of the 73 who were burned, died from their injuries. Their injuries were sustained from a horrific fire caused by Typhoon Tip! The men were from Battalion Landing Team 2/4 H&S Co.
Pvt …. Robert L. Brees………..Dell Rapids, SD, 17 years old, and youngest fatality.
PFC ….Thomas J. Breunig …..St Paul, MN.
L/cpl.. Willie Davis Jr ……….. Detroit, Mich.
L/cpl .. Philip E. DuPont …….. Bluemont, Va
Pfc ….. Tyrone C. Elem ……… Alexandria, Va.
L/cpl …Earnest E. Gutierrez.. Moor Park, Calif.
Pvt….. Gregory L. Hassell.. ..Chicago, Ill [one day after 20th birthday (Leatherneck.com)]
Pfc ….. Roger A. Larsen ………Eau Claire, Wis.
L/cpl .. L. C. Malveaux ……….Beaumont, Texas
Cpl ….. Colim Miller……………Brooklyn, NY
L/cpl… Orlando E. Sandoval…Pueblo, Colo.
L/cpl .. Robert V. Smith Jr …..Spartanburg, SC
L/cpl .. Steven R. Turner …….Tipp, Ohio
(Leatherneck.com. “Camp Fuji Fire-24 Years Ago Today.” 10-19-2003.)
[This website contains messages of survivors and relatives of survivors. Some of the survivors write that they “still have nightmares…” or had or still have post traumatic stress syndrome.
One writes of how difficult it was during and immediately afterwards – dealing with burn casualties outside the barracks while the typhoon was raging – “The wind was blowing very hard and that rain hurt my skin as it hit me.” – Then self-organizing with no outside help and getting some of the burned to the nearest Japanese hospital where there was, at first, some reluctance to treat the U.S. servicemen. But soon the “10 or 15 or more burned Marines lined up on the hallway floor were taken care of one at a time during the night.
One writes on 11-27-2008 that “every Oct I go thru massive depression…I have drank, and did all orts of drugs to help forget, but I can’t and I am finally seeking and getting help from the V.A. Another writes on 11-29-2008 that he had also suffered from PTSD and had been “homeless for almost 2 yrs, sleeping on the street, and in my car…” (Leatherneck.com. “Camp Fuji Fire-24 Years Ago Today.” 10-19-2003.)
Stars and Stripes, Oct 14, 2004: “In October 1979, Typhoon Tip, then the strongest storm to reach mainland Japan in 13 years, brought 115 mph winds and heavy rains to Fuji. More than 1,250 Marines from Camp Schwab, Okinawa, were being housed in Quonset huts on the installation’s upper half for training.
“A fuel farm, which consisted of two rubber storage bladders kept in place by a retaining wall, sat just up the hill. After rains from Tip eroded the wall and allowed a bladder to break free, hoses sprang loose, releasing 5,000 gallons of gasoline. The fuel skimmed the water’s surface and ran across upper Fuji and into the Quonset huts. Shortly after 1:40 p.m., a heater inside one of the huts ignited the gasoline.
“Firefighting vehicles arrived on the scene within 10 minutes. Emergency units from Takigahara Garrison, Gotemba City and the Gotemba-Oyama Fire Department also responded. By 3:45 p.m., the blaze was under control but still not extinguished entirely.
“Fifty-one Marines and three Japanese nationals were injured; 15 huts were destroyed and several other buildings were damaged. Casualties were evacuated to local hospitals in Gotemba, Atsugi Naval Air Facility, Yokosuka Naval Base and Yokota Air Base, as well as Brooks Army Medical Center in San Antonio. Vehicles and ambulances from Fuji Schools and Takigahara Garrison supported the transport, while Atsugi’s Headquarters, 3rd Detachment of the USS White Plains, a combat stores ship, provided airlift support for helicopter evacuations.
“Of the 54 people taken to medical facilities, 13 Marines later died from their injuries.” (Stars and Stripes. “Camp Fuji to honor 13 servicemembers who died in 1979 fire.” 10-14-2004)
Newspapers at the Time
Oct 19, Associated Press: “Tokyo (AP) — A fuel tank exploded and burned at a U.S. Marine Corps camp at the height of a typhoon today, killing one person and injuring 60,10 of them critically, a Marine spokesman said. Japanese news reports said the typhoon, packing 55 mph winds toppled the tank, which then ruptured and exploded.
“Master Gunnery Sgt Bob Green, the Marine spokesman, said he did not know the cause of the explosion and that no information was available immediately on the identity of the victims or whether they were Americans or Japanese. The most seriously injured were burn cases, Green said. Plans were being made to evacuate them to U.S. military hospitals.
“Japanese news agencies said the blast occurred when a fuel tank at the Marines’ Camp Fuji, 90 miles southwest of Tokyo, was blown over by high winds and ruptured, exploding and setting fire to several buildings. Ten buildings were burned, Kyodo news service reported.
“Green said he could not confirm that. “The fuel tank leaked, flowed and then ignited, that’s all I know,” he said.
“Communications between Tokyo and the camp were disrupted by Typhoon Tip, which moved through Japan today, leaving at least four Japanese dead in the north. It hit the Shizuoka area, where the camp is located, shortly before reaching Tokyo.
“The fuel fire occurred about 1:30 p.m., when the storm was at its peak in the area.
“About 12,000 Marines are stationed at Camp Fuji.
“Green said helicopters were standing by to take the injured to a U.S. Navy hospital at Yokosuka, headquarters of the 7th Fleet, or a hospital at Yokota, a U.S. air base.” (AP. “USMC Camp in Japan Hit By Typhoon.” The Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. 10-19-1979, p. 2.)
Oct 20, AP: “Tokyo (AP) — A team of burn specialists is flying here from an Army hospital in Texas to examine 43 U.S Marines who were trapped in flames when a fuel tank toppled and exploded sending blazing gasoline into their wooden barracks. One Marine was killed in the freak explosion and flash fire Friday, and one Japanese, a woman employee, suffered minor burns
“The team of specialists was due to arrive Sunday morning from the Brooke Army Hospital in San Antonio. Pioneering research and treatment of serious burn cases has been conducted for several years at the hospital’s bum center. Many of the injured are in serious or critical condition. A final evaluation will be made by the burn center team, the US Forces Tokyo office announced. It said it was likely that all of the injured would be evacuated to the United States for treatment….
“Navy investigators continued their probe today of the smoking ruins of the aged wooden Quonset barracks at Camp Fuji, an installation at the base of 12,000-foot Mount Fuji, Japan’s sacred extinct volcano 90 miles southwest of Tokyo.
“The camp normally houses about 12,000 Marines plus a contingent of Japanese troops and is used by both groups for training exercises.
“The cause of the blast and fire has not been officially established, but Japanese news reports, quoting local authorities, said it occurred when the fierce winds of Typhoon Tip, which passed through central Japan on Friday afternoon, knocked over a 10-foot enclosure holding the gasoline, igniting the fuel which flowed through the nearby barracks.
“Kyodo news service said the tank was on high ground and the flaming gasoline flowed downhill into the Quonset hut area The agency quoted one unidentified survivor as saying the fire “surged down toward us like lava.”
“An undetermined number of Marines escaped the flames by smashing windows or fleeing through the doors, but others were trapped inside, authorities said. Fourteen of the Quonset huts and a laundry building were destroyed in the fire that lasted nearly five hours
“The Marines were from an Okinawa-based battalion landing team that was at Camp Fuji for special training….” (Associated Press. “43 Marines Injured in Fuel Tank Explosion.” Indiana Evening Gazette, Indiana, PA. 10-20-1979, p. 19.)
Oct 21, AP: “Tokyo (AP) — U.S. military authorities reported a second American Marine died early Sunday of burns suffered in a fuel-tank fire during a typhoon. They said more than 40 of 71 Marines injured in the blaze would be evacuated immediately for medical treatment at an Army hospital in San Antonio, Texas.
“They had said earlier that one Marine was killed and 43 were injured when a fuel tank spilled a river of flaming gasoline into a barracks area as typhoon Tip lashed central Japan Friday….
“The typhoon caused a total of 28 deaths throughout Japan, authorities reported, including another Marine who was swept into the ocean when the 75 mph-plus winds and rain struck Okinawa. Sixteen persons were missing and nearly 300 were injured. American military investigators continued an inquiry into what caused the 5,000-gallon rubber bladder to empty during the storm and send the gasoline cascading into the wooden barracks at Camp Fuji, 90 miles southwest of Tokyo.” (AP. “2 Marines die, 71 injured in explosion.” Cedar Rapids Gazette, IA 10-21-1979, p. 5A.)
Oct 24, Pacific Stars and Stripes: “The death toll from Friday’s disaster at Camp Fuji, Japan, climbed to three Monday as a third victim died on the way to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas.
“Nineteen of the 38 Marines airlifted to Brooke from Yokota AB, Japan, Sunday are in very serious condition, the head of the burn unit at Brooke said Monday. Col. Basil A. Pruitt Jr., commander of the hospital, said four of the victims were burned over more than 80 percent of their bodies and seven had burns covering 60 percent of their bodies. He said the Marines would have a better chance than most burn victims because they were all young, from 17 to 22 years old, and were in excellent physical condition.
“The man who died on the way to Texas has been identified as LCpl. Thomas J. Breunig, 19, of St. Paul, Minn.
“LCpl. L. C. Malveaux of Beaumont, Texas, died Friday and, a third man, whose name is being withheld pending notification of his family, died early Sunday….
“In addition to the 37 being treated at Brooke, two Marines remain hospitalized at Yokota. Air Force officials said the men were left in Japan because their condition was too critical to make the 15-hour flight to Brooke. They are LCpl. Robert V. Smith Jr. of Spartanburg, S.C. and Cpl. Colim Miller of Brooklyn, N.Y….” (Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tokyo, Japan. “3rd Marine dies en route to Texas.” 10-24-1979, 1.)
Oct 25, AP: “Tokyo (AP) — A fourth U.S. Marine has died of burns suffered last week when a typhoon triggered a gas-tank fire that swept through the Camp Fuji training base southwest of Tokyo, a U.S. military spokesman reported Thursday. Cpl. Colim Miller of Brooklyn, N.Y. died Wednesday afternoon in the hospital at the U.S. Air Force Base at Yokota, the spokesman said. ;
He was one of more than 70 Marines burned in the blaze last Friday.” (Syracuse Post-Standard, NY. “Fourth Marine Dies of Burns.” 10-25-1979, 2.)
Nov 25, NYT: “N.Y. Times. San Antonio, Texas — It is warm on the ward, 80 degrees. Like many burn patients they tremble anyway. The protective, insulating skin has been damaged….
“It has been a month since a 5,000-gallon container of gasoline ruptured and ignited in a typhoon in Japan, sending a river of flame through the Marine Corps training camp. In a twinkling, the fire engulfed 42 Marines, aged 17 to 24. In no time, it burned them over 10 to 93 percent of their bodies.
“Three of the victims died in Japan. The rest were airlifted to San Antonio’s Brooke Army Medical Center — one died en route. At Brooke one of the world’s premier burn units is struggling with one of the most destructive traumas known to medicine: infection which attacks the burned — unprotected — areas.
“Dr. Roger Yurt, a burn specialist who accompanied the victims from Japan, said that never has the Brooke Center had to deal with so many acute cases at once. Even here, where the frontiers of burn treatment have been slowly but steadily expanded, the battle is often lost. Eight more victims have died in the past four weeks, and another six are in serious danger….
“”They call me Rowdy,” said Lance Cpl. Donald L. Fullerton….The first time he thought he was going to die was when the flames trapped him momentarily in a Quonset hut: “I just kind of stopped for a second and said, ‘Why am I gonna die now, God? I ain’t ready.” The second time was on the flight to Brooke as they removed the tan liquid and brown particles from his flame-damaged trachea. Because of the respiratory injury, and because 48 percent of his body was burned, Rowdy Fullerton was classified as “critical” when he arrived. His arms and legs have been grievously injured, and he is still in serious condition. But he is expected to make it back to
Tahoe and ski again, as any lean, blond teen-ager from San Jose, Calif., ought to.
“Before the advances in treatment of the last two decades, he probably would have died. He and most of the other survivors are no longer fighting for their lives. Seven have been discharged; 10 more will be soon. Some are doing push-ups and sit-ups. For some, only the white antibiotic cream smeared over damaged flesh tells what has happened. Seven, like Rowdy, are in serious but not critical condition.
“But for some of those still in the “critical” group, a crisis looms. They are approaching the time when, doctors say, a badly burned body either turns the corner to recovery or simply “runs out of gas.” If the corner is not turned in time, the body’s systems start collapsing “like a house of cards,” in the words of Dr. William McManus, chief of the clinical division of the Army’s Institute of Surgical Research, of which the burn unit is a part….
“In the early evening of Oct. 19, all the Marines at Camp Fuji had been ordered to stay in the barracks until the typhoon was over. The doors to Rowdy Fullerton’s barracks had been shut against the fury. The fuel tank exploded with a loud “ba-whump,” and almost instantly, it seemed, the flames were coming under the door. After an instant of panic, Fullerton forced the door. He went down in the flames, then got up and ran through them to safety. It took less than half a minute, by his estimate, for nearly half his skin to be damaged or destroyed….” (Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tokyo, Japan. “Medical battle continues for Camp Fuji fire victims.” 11-25-1979, 7.)
Wikipedia: “Heavy rainfall from the typhoon breached a flood-retaining wall at Camp Fuji, a training facility for the United States Marine Corps near Yokosuka. Marines inside the camp weathered the storm inside huts situated at the base of a hill which housed a fuel farm. The breach led to hoses being dislodged from two rubber storage bladders, releasing large quantities of fuel. The fuel flowed down the hill and was ignited by a heater used to warm one of the huts. The resultant fire killed 13 Marines, injured 68, and caused moderate damage to the facility. The facility’s barracks were destroyed, along with fifteen huts and several other structures. The barracks were rebuilt, and a memorial was established for those who lost their lives in the fire.” (Wikipedia. “Typhoon Tip.” 2-16-2012 modification.)
Sources
Associated Press. “2 Marines die, 71 injured in explosion [USMC Camp Fuji, Japan].” Cedar Rapids Gazette, IA. 10-21-1979, p. 5A. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=151905758
Associated Press. “43 Marines Injured in Fuel Tank Explosion.” Indiana Evening Gazette, Indiana, PA. 10-20-1979, p. 19. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=112127046
Associated Press. “USMC Camp in Japan Hit By Typhoon.” The Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. 10-19-1979, p. 2. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=101032673
Leatherneck.com. “Camp Fuji Fire-24 Years Ago Today.” 10-19-2003. Accessed 7-21-2017 at: http://www.leatherneck.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10380
Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tokyo, Japan. “Medical battle continues for Camp Fuji fire victims.” 11-25-1979, 7. At: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=138536413
Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tokyo, Japan. “3rd Marine dies en route to Texas.” 10-24-1979, 1. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=133253299
Stars and Stripes. “Camp Fuji to honor 13 servicemembers who died in 1979 fire.” 10-14-2004. http://www.stripes.com/news/camp-fuji-to-honor-13-servicemembers-who-died-in-1979-fire-1.25014
Syracuse Post-Standard, NY. “Fourth Marine Dies of Burns.” 10-25-1979, 2. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=20116280
Wikipedia. “Typhoon Tip.” 2-16-2012 modification. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typhoon_Tip