US Navy ENS John Parle: Medal of Honor Recipient WWII

On July 9, 1943, during the Allied invasion of Sicily, a smoke pot accidentally ignited aboard a landing craft filled with explosives, fuses, and ammunition. Realizing that the fire could detonate the entire boat and compromise the mission, Ensign John Parle rushed into the smoke and flames. He smothered a burning fuse and, with no regard for his own safety, grabbed the smoke pot with his bare hands and threw it overboard. He died days later from inhaling toxic fumes but his sacrifice saved his ship, crew, and the secrecy of the assault.
For his heroism, Ensign Parle was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

Medal of Honor Citation:
For valor and courage above and beyond the call of duty as Officer-in-Charge of Small Boats in the USS LST-375 during the amphibious assault on the island of Sicily, 9–10 July 1943. Realizing that a detonation of explosives would prematurely disclose to the enemy the assault about to be carried out, and with full knowledge of the peril involved, Ens. Parle unhesitatingly risked his life to extinguish a smoke pot accidentally ignited in a boat carrying charges of high explosives, detonating fuses and ammunition. Undaunted by fire and blinding smoke, he entered the craft, quickly snuffed out a burning fuse, and after failing in his desperate efforts to extinguish the fire pot, finally seized it with both hands and threw it over the side. Although he succumbed a week later from smoke and fumes inhaled, Ens. Parle's heroic self-sacrifice prevented grave damage to the ship and personnel and insured the security of a vital mission. He gallantly gave his life in the service of his country.

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Photos Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

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