| Navy medical personnel would operate on Marine and Japanese wounded alike. Here 2 corpsmen work on a wounded Rikusentai (“Imperial Japanese Navy Special Landing Force”), 1 of the few taken alive. The wounded Special Naval Landing Force soldier lays on a stretcher. The Marine to the left of him inserts an intravenous drip into his arm, with the tube running up and over the Marine’s shoulder. To the right, a Marine tends to the soldier’s head. Off camera, a standing Marine observes and stands guard. They are hanging a bottle of intravenous plasma, which had just arrived from the fleet. A wounded Japanese soldier was cared for by Navy medical personnel. They would operate on Marine and Japanese wounded alike. This photo was probably taken on D plus 2 in the Japanese bunker converted into a field hospital by United States Navy Lieutenant Herman R. Brukardt (June 21, 1891 – March 8, 1975) of Menominee, Michigan, and 3 corpsmen – Pharmacist’s Mate 1st Class Herbert B. “Buck” Estes (March 12, 1919 – July 4, 1992), Pharmacist’s Mate 2nd Class James R. Whitehead (March 22, 1921 – March 13, 2007) of Jackson Mississippi, and Pharmacist’s Mate 1st Class Robert E. “Bob” Costello (January 25, 1918 – November 26, 2008) of Woburn, Massachusetts. They landed with the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marines in the 5th wave. Thinking that a pillbox was cleared of Japanese machine gunners in the initial assault, Burkardt’s team set up and worked for 36 hours straight. The wounded waited outside for treatment. “My only regret,” Burkardt said, “is that we didn’t have enough medical supplies in that place to save those four who died.” He said the Marines he attended were “the bravest youngsters I’ve ever seen. They were torn and shattered by all type[s] [of] projectiles, but most of them were calm and quiet when we got to them. When our anesthesia gave out, I had to perform some painful operations, but very few of them let out a whimper.” The team treated a 126 gravely wounded casualties, and lost 4, including 1st Lieutenant William D. Hawkins (April 18, 1914 – November 21, 1943), Scout-Sniper Commanding Officer, who was shot in the shoulder and bled to death as Burkardt operated with a flashlight but without plasma. Hawkins was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for leading an attack on 5 Japanese machine guns while wounded; refusing evacuation, he was mortally wounded again. During surgery, a Japanese infiltrator wearing Marine dungarees walked into the bunker and was shot by a wounded Marine. Everyone was shaken, believing a comrade had been accidentally shot until the Marine pointed out he was wearing jika-tabi (“ground socks”) instead of boondockers. Initially arrested, the Marine was praised for his keen observation. Another infiltrator was struck in the head with a rifle butt. By D plus 2, scores of Korean laborers came into the Marine lines, giving up. Many were wounded and were given medical attention by Burkardt and his corpsman. Only 17 Japanese and a 129 Korean laborers of the Betio garrison of 4,836 Imperial Japanese Navy forces and Taiwanese and Korean laborers survived to be captured. The prisoners were loaded onto LVT-1 Amtracs for removal from Betio. Only 8 men – 1 Leading Seaman, 6 Petty Officers, and a Warrant Officer – were Rikusentai of the Sasebo 7th or 3rd Special Naval Landing Forces. | |
| Image Filename | wwii1602.jpg |
| Image Size | 1.79 MB |
| Image Dimensions | 3800 x 4920 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | United States Marine Corps |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | November 22, 1943 |
| Location | |
| City | Betio |
| State or Province | Tarawa |
| Country | Gilberts |
| Archive | |
| Record Number | |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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