Thursday, May 24, 2001 | 10:22 a.m.
Ray Turpin looked into the morning sky on Dec. 7, 1941, to see a cluster of bombs dropping from a group of Japanese war planes. The bombs appeared to be headed straight at him.
Turpin, then a 19-year-old U.S. Marine private, was standing on the starboard side of the capsizing battleship USS Oklahoma, which had already been hit by at least five torpedoes. It ultimately sank at Pearl Harbor.
"I was on the ledge (of the ship), and I was seeing all the other ships getting hit, when five to seven bombers flew overhead," Turpin said. "The bombs looked like they were coming right at us, but they ended up hitting the battleships behind us. I saw some hit the (USS) West Virgina, and I could feel the concussion and the heat from the explosions on the (USS) Arizona.
"There was nothing I could do. I guess it would be like being out in the middle of a freeway. Where are you going to run?"
Turpin, 80, lives in Las Vegas. He will share his memories Saturday when he and his 31-year-old grandson watch a new film -- "Pearl Harbor" -- based on the infamous attack.
Although the $140 million movie promises stunning special effects and stars such as Ben Affleck, Turpin doesn't need Hollywood's help to remember the surprise attack that killed 2,395 Americans, including more than 400 sailors and Marines aboard the Oklahoma.
Turpin was below deck, talking with fellow Marines about their plans for shore leave. The talking stopped when a voice that emanated from the ship's intercom announced they were under attack.
Turpin was responsible for manning one of the ship's four secondary 5-inch guns, but in the event of an aerial attack, anyone not working one of the ship's anti-aircraft weapons was to take cover on the third deck. As Turpin ran for cover he felt a jolt, the result of two torpedoes that had struck the ship.
"It felt like the ship jumped 3 feet out of the water when the torpedoes hit," Turpin said.
The intercom then called the men to "battle stations," sending Turpin and the other Marines running back the way they had come to man a secondary gun. To reach the gun, the five Marines had to traverse an open portion of the ship's weather deck, Turpin said.
"As we ran across they strafed us, and splinters from the deck were flying all around us. But we got to the gun and no one was hit," Turpin said.
The order to abandon ship came minutes later, and most of the 1,300 crew members dived overboard to swim to the beach or the USS Maryland, which was anchored beside the Oklahoma.
Turpin, who was not a strong swimmer, remained on the sinking ship as he waited for calmer waters. The ship soon turned onto its port side. Starboard, sailors trapped below deck tried to escape the sinking ship through the portholes, Turpin said.
"Our chaplain was inside helping push people up to us, and we'd pull them out," Turpin said. "We got four or five out, and I wanted to try to get the chaplain out, but he didn't think he could fit. It was dark inside the ship, but I could see him in the light from the porthole. He said he was going to look for other guys, and it was the last time I saw him alive."
It was then that Turpin decided to leave the Oklahoma, never mind the rough waters. He began to make his way, hand-over-hand, across a mooring line connecting his ship to the Maryland.
"It was at least 30 feet to the Maryland, and the line was probably about 20 feet over the harbor," Turpin said.
The Oklahoma was sinking, which, because of the line, was affecting the Maryland. A sailor was ordered to cut the line.
"The line was really taut when he cut it, and it snapped me almost all the way back to the Oklahoma," Turpin said. "I had to untangle myself from the line, and with the help of a sailor I swam toward the Maryland. When I finally made it to the ship I was covered in oil from the damaged ships."
A doctor ordered Turpin to the infirmary, where he could clean up and be examined. Turpin didn't hang around. Soon he was on the deck of the Maryland, where he found members of his gun crew, who were operating one of the ship's anti-aircraft weapons.
Turpin helped man the gun. Until, that is, he was spotted by the doctor, who ordered the Marine back to the infirmary.
"Every gun on the ship was blazing away, and here I am taking a shower while a corpsman keeps an eye on me," Turpin said. "I didn't have anything to wear, so the corpsman gave me some hospital pajamas, and that's what I wore when they moved everyone from the Oklahoma off the Maryland and onto Ford Island after the battle."
Turpin, who retired from the military in 1960, has lived in Las Vegas for 40 years. Although he said he is looking forward to seeing "Pearl Harbor" with his family on Saturday, he'll leave the reviews for later.
"I don't know that you can do much better than 'Tora! Tora! Tora!,' " Turpin said of the 1970 film. "I swear they must have taken some of that from actual battle footage. I was right in the middle of all that smoke."
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