Storm echoes war for veteran

Death, ruin in Philippines are things he’s seen before

Monday, December 9, 2013

When Hot Springs resident John Baran saw the destruction caused by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, particularly at Tacloban, he paused and reflected on the similar destruction he saw more than 69 years ago during the Leyte landings to liberate the Philippines from the Japanese in World War II.

Seventy-two years ago, America was plunged into World War II after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Nearly three years after the attack, America was tightening the noose on the Japanese through a successful island-hopping campaign that led to the Battle of Leyte Gulf, which began on Oct. 20, 1944.

Baran was a teenager right out of high school and was attached to the 96th Infantry, 381st Regiment with Company C, part of the huge landing force at Leyte near Tacloban that cleared the area of enemy resistance. This allowed Gen. Douglas MacArthur to fulfill his promise to the Philippines with his famous three-word statement, “I shall return.” In May 1942, as the Japanese took over the Philippines, MacArthur was forced to evacuate from the island of Corregidor in Manila Bay via PT boats.

“When I saw the pictures of the destruction there in Tacloban, it reminded me so much of what I saw when I went ashore 69 years ago. There was destruction and dead bodies everywhere, and the scene repeated itself after the typhoon hit the area a few weeks ago. It was like watching history repeat itself,” Baran said.

After his basic training, Baran said he left Pearl Harbor in August 1944 as troop ship convoys were moved west to prepare for the liberation of the Philippines.

“The day before we landed at Tacloban, the Navy fed us a steak dinner. It was the last meal for a lot of the guys. The next morning, before daylight, the naval bombardment began. It lasted until after daybreak, and the landings began,” Baran said.

Baran recalled that two Japanese kamikaze suicide planes tried to hit the cruiser that MacArthur was stationed on, but both were shot down.

“There were destroyers who were dropping smudge pots between the fleet and shore, and we couldn’t see a thing as the first waves went ashore. My group didn’t go ashore until the third day to reinforce the units that had taken so many casualties. We saw the Battleship Tennessee bombard the area with 14-inch shells, LSTs [landing ship, tank] launching rockets as they went toward the shore, and a group of Marines were shooting an 88mm gun at the far side of the island where Japanese reinforcements were trying to come ashore,” Baran said.

When his unit finally got ashore, the carnage of three days of battle was everywhere.

“There were dead bodies everywhere and body parts that we had to step over. It was sickening. There were also a lot of Filipinos killed, including a family of a husband, wife and their three kids who were trying tohide in a bamboo thicket. There was a large hole nearby made by a shell from the Tennessee. The concussion had killed them,” Baran said.

In addition to numerous small firefights in Filipino villages, Baran was involved in two heavy battles. The first was on Catman Hill, which was 1,400 feet high. Baran said American troops had a tough job digging out the Japanese resistance, and both sides took heavy casualties.

The second battle was on Suicide Ridge, and Baran was wounded in the hip on Nov. 6 while he and six other men in his unit were trying to advance across an open area to better cover.

“I got hit by a Japanese sniper who popped out of a spider hole at the time we were also under mortar fire. We were crossing an open area one at a time, and when my time came, I got up and felt like I got hit by a 2-by-4 when the bullet hit my hip and fractured it,” Baran said.

Baran initially received a morphine shot and a pint of plasma before passing out. Before he could be evacuated, he spent three days at the aid station on the beachhead and nearly died from a 107-degree fever.

The wound has given Baran trouble all his life, and today he walks with crutches and leg braces.

After seeing the damage caused by Haiyan, Baran’s heart goes out to the Philippine nation.

“I’m surprised more people didn’t die. My prayers go out to them,” he said.

Arkansas, Pages 9 on 12/09/2013