- Richard C. “Dick” Higgins, one of the few survivors of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, has died at the age of 102.
- Higgins died of natural causes at his home in Bend, Oregon, his family said.
- Higgins served as a radio operator in a seaplane patrol squadron stationed at Naval Base Hawaii during the attack on December 7, 1941.
Richard C. “Dick” Higgins, one of the few survivors of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, has died, his family announced Wednesday. He was 102 years old.
Higgins died of natural causes at his home in Bend, Oregon, on Tuesday, said his granddaughter Angela Norton.
Higgins was a radio operator assigned to a seaplane patrol squadron based at Naval Base Hawaii on the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, when Japanese planes began dropping bombs.
On this day in history, December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor killed 2,403 Americans and ushered in World War II.
In a 2008 oral history interview, he described how he was in a bunk in a screened-in balcony or porch on the third floor of the barracks when the bombing began.
Pearl Harbor survivor Dick Higgins listens to a speech during a ceremony at Bend High School on December 7, 2023 in Bend, Oregon. Mr. Higgins, one of the few survivors of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, died Tuesday at his home in Bend, Oregon. He was 102 years old. (Breaking news via Joe Klein/The Associated Press)
“I jumped out of my bunk and ran to the end of the balcony, and the moment I got there, the plane went right over the barracks,” he said in an interview at the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg. Texas.
He estimated the plane was about 50 feet (15 meters) to his side and 100 feet (30 meters) above the barracks. He explained that the plane had a “big red meatball”, referring to the red circular emblem painted on the wings and fuselage of the Japanese plane.
“So there was no question what was going on in my mind because of what was going on,” he said.
Norton described her grandfather as a humble and kind man who frequently visited schools to share stories about Pearl Harbor, World War II and the Great Depression. Norton said he wants to teach history so people don’t repeat it.
“It was never about him,” Norton said. “The heroes were those who never returned.”
Higgins was born on July 24, 1921, on a farm near Mangum, Oklahoma. He joined the Navy in 1939 and retired 20 years later. He then became an aeronautical engineer for Northrop Corporation (later Northrop Grumman) and other defense contractors. Norton said he was involved in the development of the B-2 stealth bomber.
His wife, Winnie Ruth, died in 2004 at the age of 82. They were married for her 60 years.
Shortly after entering hospice last Thursday, he told his granddaughter, “I’m ready to go see Winnie Ruth.”
“I said, ‘Okay, go home. Be with Jesus and be with Winnie Ruth,'” Norton said. “‘That’s okay. Just leave us. You’ve lived a very full and wonderful life.'”
World War II veteran, 103, returns to Pearl Harbor to pay tribute to fallen comrades, 82 years after Japanese attack
There are currently 22 survivors of Pearl Harbor alive, said Kathleen Farley, president of the Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors of California. Farley said other survivors may still be alive, but she may not know because not all of them joined the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association when it was formed in 1958. she stated.
The bombing killed approximately 2,400 military personnel and plunged the United States into World War II. The USS Arizona alone lost 1,177 sailors and Marines, nearly half of the total.
According to a rough estimate compiled by military historian J. Michael Wenger, there were about 87,000 military personnel on Oahu as of Dec. 7.
Higgins has two children, two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. His family plans to hold a memorial service Thursday at a church in Bend, followed by a ceremony with full military honors. His body will then be transported to California and buried next to his wife.
