Quote:
Originally Posted by Sailor Steve
That story is completely unsubstantiated. The forward magazine exploded, and the ship was in Condition X-Ray, meaning all watertight doors were open. The ship probably completely flooded within a minute, giving no one time to button up. The neighboring Oklahoma capsized, but the hull was still above water, giving some a chance to escape and others time to bang on the hull with tools. Thirty-two of them were saved. Most of them were not. They were likely already drowned. I have never seen the Arizona story corroborated by any real evidence.
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According to Morison's official history of the U.S. Navy in WW2 (vol. 3, p.108):
"
Arizona barely had time to sound General Quarters, man battle stations, and set Condition Zed (complete watertight integrity) when she received several lethal torpedo and bomb hits."
So either Arizona had set condition Zed or was in the process of doing so when the forward magazine exploded.
That story has been floating around for a long time and way before the interweb was around. I see you have heard it too. Whether there is any truth to it or it is an urban legend is hard to know now.