The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-04-04
Army Forces
Moving Down
East Coast
Rapid Gains On All Sectors
Meeting Little Jap
Resistance

GUAM, Wednesday, April 3-lf'
Marines of the Third Amphibious
Corps. scoring gains OF 1000 to s.
moo wards, reached the east coast
nj Okinawa yesterday while Sew
enth Division infant1ymen who
hsected the vital island on Mon
dav moved southwark along the
shores of huge Nakagusuku Bay,
the Navy announced today.
This was the first mention of Maj.
Gen. Archibald V. Arnolds Sew
pnth Infantry Division j. action on
Okinawa, the strategic Ryukyu is
land only 325 miles southwest OF
the Japanese mainland.
Fleet Adm. Chester w. Nimitz
communique reported rapid gains
on all Okinawa fronts against still
negligible resistance.
Mai. Gen. Roy S. GeigeT's Ma
rines at the north end of the line
reached the east coast and put off
the Katshin peninsula.
Mai. Gen. John r. Hodges Gath
Corps Doughboys. who hit the east
coast the day before, drove eight
miles southwark along the shores
of Katsuren Bay, a small inlet
within Nakagusuku harbor, one
time anchorage for the japanese
fleet.
These infantrymen reashed ku'
ba town, on the western shore OF
Nakagusuku.
Resistance throughout the day
was negligible Admiral Nimitz
reported.
General Hodge earlier said the
invasion was going far better
than our widest dreams" decla--
ing the Japanese had made the
Yanks a present of south-central
Okinawa and 1--WE are pleased to
have it."
Naval guns and carrier planes
gave close support to the ground
operations. Supplies flowed onto
the beaches in an uninterrupted
Stream.
Meanwhile, Vice Adm. Marc A.
Mitscher's carrier planes attacked
targets in the Sakishima group OF
the southern Ryukyus yesterday
This area had been pounded only
few days previously by guns
and planes of the British Pacific
Fleet, now operating as self
contained unit in cooperating with
the U. S. Fleet.
Admiral Nimitz reported this
damage inflicted on the japanese
by American carrier planes sup.
porting the Okinawa invasion:
Ai1craft-17 shot out of the air
1--we destroyed on the ground; Is
damaged in the air and on the
ground
Shipping-Sunk: Three motor
torpedo boats; two small cargo
SHIPS; nine small craft; probably
sunk; one small cargo ship; fou.
small craft. Damaged: One motor
torpedo boat; four small cargo
SHIPS; one lugger; IA small craft
installations Six submarine
pens on Unten Bay Okinawa, de
stroyed and another heavily dam
aged; mills, barracks, bridges, ;
radio station, pillboxes, buildings
docks, gun positions and covered
reVetments destroyed or damaged
on Okinawa. Other installations OF
Iokuno Amami, Kikai and Minam
DaIto islands heavily hit.
lhls damage was inflicted Marcel
81 and 81, in the pre-invasion soft
ehlng of the Ryukyus.
Units of Hodges corps, part o
me Army Marine 10th Army, thrus
swiftly forward from the Okinaw
southwest coast beachheads to oc
cupy the villages of Tobara ant
A"ashl on the east coast at Naka
guSuku Bay yesterday, said Rob
ON Coons, Associated Press wa
correspondent with the troops.
hoage said the penetration t
tne east coast through negligibl
Solposltlon, meant that objective
tao oeen reached in the three day
SINCE the Sunday invasion, whic
9ao been expected to take fiv
Gays to achieve.
me Yanks' crossing of the i.
Iand' eight miles wide at thj
polnl' with such light casualtie
means that they have made u
present Of the center of the il
land Hodge said.