Naquin also was a survivor of the attack on Pearl Harbor while aboard the battleship , which sank in shallow water after being struck a bomb and two torpedoes in the Japanese attack on December 7, 1941. During World War II, he served as navigator of the heavy cruiser in the battles of the Coral Sea and Midway. At the Battle of Tassafaronga on November 30, 1942 the cruiser was struck by a Japanese torpedo, which detonated the ship's forward magazines and gasoline tanks and the ensuing explosion severed 150 ft of her bow forward of turret #2. The severed bow, including turret #1, swung around the port side and crushed several holes in the "New Orleans"' hull before it sank at the stern and damaged the port inboard propeller. Naquin guided the ship to Tulagi Harbor, which was reached near daybreak on December 1, 1942 for repairs and was awarded a Bronze Star for his role in saving the vessel.