Wounded U.S. Marine evacuated from Okinawa. A wounded U.S.

Wounded U.S. Marine evacuated from Okinawa. A wounded U.S. Marine, a casualty in the fierce fightinh which followed the American invasion March 31, 1945, of Okinawa, Ryukyu (Loochoo) island only 375 miles (600 kms.) from Japan, is placed aboard a rubber boat for transfer to a Navy patrol plane floating offshore. American casualties on Okinawa through May 29, including Army, navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard, amounted to 9,511 killed or missing in action and 17,704 wounded. Through June 6, Japanese dead on Okinawa, totaled 66,324, an average of 1,000 a day losing their lives in the futile attempt to hold the strategic outpost. Concerning the mounting casualty figures as U.S. forces near Tokyo, President Harry S. Truman said in a message to the U.S. Congress June 1, 1945: "No matter how hard we hit the enemy from the air or from the sea, the foot soldier will still have to advance against strongly entrenched and fanatical troops, through sheer grit and fighting skill ... .