Located
Located 30 minutes by boat from Jabor, Jaluit Atoll.

Wartime History
Occupied by 2,2000 Japanese for the duration of the war, this island was subjected 6.2 million pounds of bombs, dropped over twenty months by American aircraft, after Kwajalein and Majuro were occupied. Attacking the island was considered a milk run for American crews practicing bombing techniques until the end of the war.

Despite the tonage of bombs dropped, of 837 Japanese killed on the island, only 381 were due to bombing, the rest were starvation and disease. During the war, the garrison mannaged to fish, raise pigs and cultivate gardens.

Prior to surrender, the Japanese commander, Rear-Admiral Nisuke Masuda asked the local chief's premission to allow his men to remain on the island after the war (they declined).

When the garrison of 2,000 surrendered, Masuda committed suicide on September 2, 1945 before his scheduled trial appearance for ordering the deaths of three US aviators captured in 1943. In his suicide note, he admitted to the killings.

Today
Since the war, the island has reverted, and is one of the best preserved wartime locations in the Marshall Islands. There is no electricity on the island, but it is possible to walk around the island in a day.

Emiej Seaplane Base (Imeji)
Japanese seaplane base, disused since the war

H8K2 Emily Flying Boat
Sunk off the seaplane base

H8K2 Emily Flying Boat
Sunk off the seaplane base

TBD-1 Devastator 5-T-6 Bureau Number 1515
Pilot Hein ditched February 1, 1942

TBD-1 Devastator Bureau Number 0298
Pilot Johnson ditched February 1, 1942

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Last Updated
October 1, 2009