The Ely miner., 1943-09-30
Sergeant Survives
After 80 Days on
Barren Islands

j
in action" His comrades in q
marine corps flying unit in the
Guadalcanal area had long CIV
en- up hope of seeing him again,
But Sergeant Bill Coffeen came
back. Shaggy and lean, ne
stepped out of a navy rescue
plane. He told of surviving
storms, blistering sun and in.
fection and living for 80 days on
a coconut diet. The last 40 days
he was missing, friendly natives
cared for him.
Today Staff Sergt. William I. Cot
feen Jr., %, whose parents live a
5343 North Lotus street, Chicago, Ill.
is at a naval base hospital being
treated for malaria and malnutrl
ton.
az got off on the wrong foot tha
morning of April Is and ended VI
the same way" began Coffeen. MY
plane barely missed the treetops a:
took off from Henderson Field. A
guide light at the end of the STRIP
blinded me. We were to escort navy
torpedo bombers on a mission.
within sight of land between Ko
lombangara and Choiseul islands,
suddenly noticed my engine smok
ing. My oil line was leaking.
Losing altitude rapidly and fear
ing the motor would explode, de-
cided to bale out.
1T seemed that I hit the water
Just a few seconds after my para
chute opened.
81 pulled the cord on my life jack
ct, but it failed to initiate. 1t had
been punctured. I pulled my rubber
raft out and inflated it. The paddle
was missing.
1.-THE water was calm, but 80 min.
ltes later a storm hit. High waves
tossed my small rubber raft about
like toothpick, and overturned it
Into the water went all of my medi.
cal supplies and emergency rations
All had left was the clothing I was
wearing, and my hunting knife and
pistol.
AFTER I righted the raft started
padding with my hands. still was
In sight of land. In mid-afternoor
I heard the familiar drone of ou1
fighter plane motors-it was my
fight returning from the strike on
which ! had set out that morning.
Several of the planes flew low
and almost directly over me. fired
five shots from my pistol and waved
the white raft sail, but they failed
to see me.
81 started padding with my hands
toward land. On the way, sharks
swished by the raft.
Reaches Small Island.
''I slept in a sitting position that
night. Long before daybreak
started again for land. The sea
was calm. Near sundown the Sec
ond day out, I finally reached the
shore of a small island. I was ex-
hausted, hungry and thirsty. When
] reached the beach of the coconut
grove island I realized I made a
grave mistake by tossing my shoes
overheard after the storm. My
socks were the only protection for
my feet.
81 gathered two coconuts, cut
holes in them with my knife, drank
the juice, then broke them open and
ate the meat. 1t was the first liquid
and food I had had in nearly 4S
hours.
''I stayed on this island three
days. It was uninhabited and knew
] would die if I stayed there.
Far away could see a larger
island and decided on the fifth day
to strike out for it. I was growing
weak from the coconut diet.
"After manipulating along the
coast all that day with a blazing sun
baking me, I made the next island
at dusk. 1t was studded with COCO
nut trees like the first island.
''Next morning I decided to try
for another island. 1t took me all
that day to reach it. 1t was the same
story when I landed there-no food,
no fresh water, no life.
Arm and Foot Infected.
my left arm was swollen to
twice its normal size overnight.
My right foot was also infected.
] realized blood poison was devel-
oping, so I cut open the source OF
infection with my knife, and bathed
my arm in salt water for more than
an hour. I was relieved somewhat
and decided to move on. That morn
ing I tried to drink coconut juice,
but just couldn't get it down.
''As I padded along the shore ]
saw what appeared to be a red
rooted house near the end of the
island.
1.-THE house proved a greater dis
tance away than I had estimated; /;