Civilians Affected by the Attack: Pearl Harbor’s Collateral Damage

When discussing the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, the focus often shifts to the heroic sailors and the devastating damage to U.S. battleships. However, many forget the impact on the everyday civilians living on Oahu, going about their usual Sunday routines when the bombs started falling. Regular families, including young children, were thrust into a war zone, confused and terrified as explosions and gunfire erupted around them. Among those affected were young children like 4-year-old Charlene Sexton.

Charlene Sexton, the daughter of Chief Warrant Officer Charles Mencer, was just a small child when the attack began. Mencer, a pharmacist who had served aboard the USS Arizona in 1939, had requested a land assignment and moved his family to Oahu, where they lived a seemingly peaceful life. The night before the attack, the Mencers hosted a gathering with friends—many of whom would soon be caught in the devastating bombing that followed.
Charlene, like many other children, could not fully grasp what was happening. However, her father’s panicked shout of “It’s the Japs!” and the sight of her mother narrowly avoiding a strafing run by an incoming Japanese plane left a lasting mark. The chaos, fear, and destruction were difficult for anyone to process, let alone a 4-year-old child. The attack was not just a military strike; it was an assault on the civilian lives who found themselves in the crossfire.

The Kelley family also experienced the terrifying events of that day firsthand. Four-year-old Pat Kelley and her brother Richard had been dropped off at Sunday School in Manoa Valley when the first wave of attacks hit. Their father, realizing the danger, rushed back to retrieve them. As the family drove through the streets of Oahu, they witnessed buildings erupting in flames. One of these was a Japanese school that fell victim to the bombing.
In a particularly frightening moment, the Kelleys’ car stalled just as a bomb exploded nearby, causing the ground beneath them to crater. The attack was relentless, and the family’s ordeal, narrowly escaping with their lives, was shared by many others across the island. The horrors they witnessed as children were not limited to the harbor; the attack spread far beyond the military targets, affecting civilian homes and businesses.

Civilians all over Oahu found themselves in life-threatening situations. As the Kelleys fled the danger, another couple, Mr. and Mrs. Good, were forced to take cover in a liquor store to avoid the debris from a bomb that nearly struck the Kelley family’s car. Their apartment was destroyed, as were many homes across the island. Streets were hit, houses were split in half, and neighborhoods were transformed into battle zones. The threat of death was no longer limited to soldiers on distant battlefields; it had come to American soil, striking at the heart of Oahu’s civilian population.

Though the primary targets were military, the collateral damage to civilian life was significant. Over 2,400 military personnel were killed during the attack, but the civilian toll was not insignificant. Out of the over 100 civilians affected, 68 were killed, and many others were injured. The shockwaves of the explosions reverberated far beyond the naval base, and the terror stretched into the streets, homes, and lives of everyday residents.

While Pearl Harbor is often remembered for the military sacrifice, the stories of civilians like Charlene Sexton and Pat Kelley highlight the broader impact of the attack. These civilians were innocent bystanders, forced to confront the brutal reality of war on what should have been a quiet Sunday morning. Now, more than 75 years later, their stories remain a poignant reminder of the collateral damage inflicted on non-combatants during the attack on Pearl Harbor.