Updated:June 5, 2023

Memorial Monument for Submarine No. 43 Fallen Sailors

 

 

On March 19, 1924, the Imperial Navy’s Submarine No.43 collided with the light cruiser Tatsuta and sank during exercises off the coast of Sasebo. The survivors in the submarine kept making frantic pleas for help over the phone. Rescue operations began immediately to save the 45 men trapped inside the ruptured vessel. But efforts to raise the submarine proceeded slowly due to the depth of 46 meters and strong currents. Some 10 hours later, messages from the vessel ended. The submarine was finally raised from the bottom of the sea 24 days later. Shipyard workers cutting into the vessel made a grim discovery and shed tears. Written on the iron doors and bulkheads were notes to loved ones left by the doomed seamen. This accident became a song and a memorial monument was erected at Udogoe, where the accident location could be seen. The tragedy has been passed down to the present.