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The United States Navy Memorial

Navy Memorial Honoring the Men & Women of the Sea Services

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Houston

Ship Designation: 
CA-30
Date Lost: 
Sunday, March 1, 1942
Battle at Sunda Strait
Houston in company with HMAS Perth and HMS Exeter depart Priok and at 2300 in the vicinity of Sunda Strait encounter a Japanese landing force taking them under fire and causing wide spread damage to 4 loaded Japanese transports. Japanese battle force comprised of two heavy cruisers, one light cruiser and 10 destroyers close in on the Houston force. ... One of 8 torpedoes launched from the Japanese forces strikes Houston. At 0015 Japanese heavy cruiser Mikuma finds Houston with its 8” guns ripping into the after engine room killing the entire engine room crew. ... Turret 2 hit by enemy gunfire which starts fire in magazine; fire progresses to small arms magazine and to Turret magazine. At 0033 with the ship sinking, the order to abandon ship is given. While abandoning ship Japanese continue to shell and send torpedoes into her hull. At 0045 Houston sinks. ... Of the crew less than half make it into the water in Sunda Strait. Many of Houston’s survivors were captured and interred in Japanese prisons until the conclusion of WWII

Lost At Sea Log

Number of sailors in this log: 632

Namesort ascending Service Branch
CMM David Weaver USN
GM 1c Ben Weaver USN
EM 2c Charles Weaver USN
F 2c James Watt USN
MM 2c Charles Watkins USN
Mus 2c John Warner USN
SF 1c Willard Ward USN
MM 3c Nelson Walling USN
Pvt Richard Wallen USMC
Cox John Wallace USN
MM 1c Albert Waldschmidt USN
GM 3c John Walchuk USN
Elec Walter Waite USN
Matt 1c Yau Wai USN
GM 3c Harry Virchow USN
EM 3c Harvey Villwock USN
Mus 3c Donald Villers USN
Sea 1c James Verzwyvelt USN
EM 3c Ralph Verley USN
F Mus Sgt Houston Vaughan USMC

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Prepared by CAPT R.O. Strange USN (Ret.)