Torpedoed off Senaga Shima
On 16 June, Twiggs was on radar picket duty off Senaga Shima in the western fire support area. At 2030, a single, low-flying plane dropped a torpedo which hit Twiggs on her port side, exploding her number 2 magazine. The plane then circled and completed its kamikaze mission in a suicide crash. The explosion enveloped the destroyer in flame - and, within an hour, she sank. Despite the hazard of exploding ammunition from the blazing Twiggs, 188 survivors were rescued from the oily waters. Among the 162 dead and missing was her commanding officer, Comdr. George Phillip.
