OAN Staff James Meyers
2:48 PM – Wednesday, January 1, 2025
Harry Chandler, a former Navy medic who helped save injured sailors by pulling them from the oil-filled waters of Pearl Harbor after the 1941 Japanese attack on the naval base, has died at the age of 103.
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Chandler died on Monday at a senior living center in Tequesta, Florida, according to Ron Mahaffee, the husband of his granddaughter, Kelli Fahey.
Chandler reportedly suffered from congestive heart failure, but Mahaffee noted that doctors and nurses simply cited his old age when listing a cause of death.
He becomes the third Pearl Harbor survivor to die in the past few weeks. Last April, Lou Conter, the last living survivor of the USS Arizona, died in his sleep at the age of 102 after battling congestive heart failure.
Chandler was a hospital corpsman 3rd class on December 7th, 1941, when Japanese fighter planes dropped bombs and fired machine guns on battleships in the harbor, provoking the U.S. to jump into World War II.
In an interview with the Associated Press in 2023, Chandler explained that he saw Japanese planes flying closer as he was raising the flag at a mobile hospital in Aiea Heights, which is located in the hills overseeing the base.
“I thought they were planes coming in from the states, until I saw the bombs dropping,” Chandler stated. He noted that his first instinct was to take cover and “get the hell out of here.”
“I was afraid that they’d start strafing,” he added.
In response, Chandler’s unit rode trucks down to attend to the wounded. In a Pacific Historic Parks oral history interview, he also mentioned boarding a boat in order to quickly grab wounded sailors from the water.
The harbor was smothered in oil from exploding ships, so Chandler washed the sailors off after getting them out of the murky water. Chandler also said that he was too focused on helping the men in the water and that he was filled with adrenaline, so he did not feel any fear, at least until later.
“It got so busy you weren’t scared. Weren’t scared at all. We were busy. It was after you got scared,” Chandler said.
He also realized later that he could have easily been killed, “But you didn’t think about that while you were busy taking care of people,” Chandler continued.
The attack by Japan killed over 2,300 U.S. servicemen. Almost half, or 1,177, were sailors and Marines on board the USS Arizona, which ended up sinking nine minutes after it was bombed.
Chandler’s memories came back after visiting Pearl Harbor for a 2023 ceremony that commemorated the 82nd anniversary of the bombing.
“I look out there, and I can still see what’s going on. I can still see what was happening,” Chandler told The Associated Press.
When asked what he wanted Americans to know about Pearl Harbor, he simply responded: “Be prepared.”
“We should have known that was going to happen. The intelligence has to be better,” he said.
“I’ve interviewed so many people in those almost last 10 years, and I’ve never walked away from an interview just so in awe of someone,” Stefany Valderrama, an anchor at CBS affiliate WPEC-TV said after an interview with Chandler. “His memory, he remembered all of those moments and he talked about it so… eloquently and clearly.”
After the war, Chandler became a painter and wallpaper hanger, starting an upholstery business with his brother. He also joined the Navy reserves, retiring as a senior chief in 1981.
Chandler had one biological daughter and he adopted two daughters during his second marriage to a woman named Anna Chandler, who died back in 2004. He is survived by two daughters, nine grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, and five great-great-grandchildren.
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