{"product_id":"sunk-in-kula-gulf-the-final-voyage-of-the-uss-helena-and-the-incredible-story-of-her-survivors-in-world-war-ii-9781597978392","title":"Sunk in Kula Gulf: The Final Voyage of the USS Helena and the Incredible Story of Her Survivors in World War II","description":"The early morning hours of July 6, 1943, found the USS \u003ci\u003eHelena\u003c\/i\u003e off the Solomon Islands in what would later be known as the Battle of Kula Gulf. But the ship's participation in the battle came to a swift end when three Japanese torpedoes suddenly struck. One hundred and sixty-eight sailors went down with the ship, many never surviving the initial torpedo hits. As the last of the \u003ci\u003eHelena\u003c\/i\u003e disappeared below the ocean's surface, the remaining crewmen's struggle for survival had only just begun.\u003ci\u003eSunk in Kula Gulf\u003c\/i\u003e tells the epic story of the \u003ci\u003eHelena\u003c\/i\u003e's survivors. Two destroyers plucked more than seven hundred from the sea in a night rescue operation as the battle continued to rage. A second group of eighty-eight sailors --clustered into three lifeboats--made it to a nearby island and was rescued the next day. A third group of survivors, spread over a wide area, was missed entirely. Clinging to life rafts or debris, the weary men were pushed away from the area of the sinking by a strong current. After enduring days at sea under the hot tropical sun, they finally found land. It was, however, the Japanese-held island of Vella Lavella and deep behind the front lines. The survivors organized and disappeared into the island's interior jungle. Living a meager existence, the group evaded the Japanese for eight days until the Marines and U.S. Navy evacuated the shipwrecked sailors in a daring rescue operation. Using a wide variety of sources, including previously unpublished firsthand accounts, John J. Domagalski brings to life this amazing, little-known story from World War II.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDomagalski, John J.:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \"John J. Domagalski (www.pacificwarauthor.com) is the author of Under a Blood Red Sun: The Remarkable Story of PT boats in the Philippines and the Rescue of General MacArthur. It is the story of a small group of American sailors fighting the Japanese - and desperate circumstances - in the Philippines during the opening days of World War II\"","brand":"Potomac Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50645612101906,"sku":"9781597978392","price":23.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_94178dcf-a399-46c9-9a74-3980006f2419.jpg?v=1733156571","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/sunk-in-kula-gulf-the-final-voyage-of-the-uss-helena-and-the-incredible-story-of-her-survivors-in-world-war-ii-9781597978392","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}