WAR ZONE

The approach of the 60^th anniversary of Pearl Harbor on December 7 signals a pause to remember that period of American history. Although most Americans consider Pearl Harbor the last time a foreign power attacked their land, the United States was prey to another enemy that lurked close to her soil. On January 13, 1942, five German U-boats crept through the ocean to the banks of Cape Hatteras and the southern coast of the US. This operation, called Paukenschlag, or Drumbeat, marked Germany's declaration of war on the US.

War Zone, a 2 1/2-hour documentary produced by Kevin Duffus, gives a detailed account of German U-boat attacks off the coast of North Carolina. Beginning with the attack on January 18 that sank the USS Allan Jackson, War Zone profiles the merchant ships that were destroyed, the individual U-boats that fired the deadly torpedoes, and the U-boat commanders that accepted their mission to sink ships.

The documentary is divided into different themes, each personalized with a 1940's song recorded by North Carolina's own Gregg Gelb Swing Band. Moonlight Serenade begins the recollection of America's innocence and comfort with a war that was happening somewhere else. War Zone then details the commencement and end of Operation Drumbeat, followed by a second wave of U-boats over the next six months. Between March and July, the NC coast was defiled with oil and bodies. Residents of Ocracoke and Hatteras recall their suspicions of spies and the US government's attempts to control public opinion by propaganda and curfews. While some relationships began and flourished, others ended in death.

Before producing War Zone, Kevin Duffus said that he was aware that U-boats had come to the US, but had no idea how large the operation was until he began researching facts for the program. "This operation could have ended with Great Britain's defeat," he said. "I realized then that this was pretty significant."

War Zone begins at the end of 1941 with the sense of innocence that characterized America until the December 7 attack on Pearl Harbor. As American troops marched overseas to battle the Germans in Europe, the Germans sought to launch a U-boat attack off the coast of the US. Their goal--to force Great Britain's surrender by choking off her life support in food, supplies and fuel. To accomplish this end, Admiral Donitz of Germany assembled five U-boats to begin Operation Paukenschlag, a short-term but eye-opening assault that would interrupt sea trade routes between the US and Great Britain. The operation was much more successful than Germany had hoped; since US military personnel were in Europe, the coast was completely unguarded, leaving Germany an open door to lurk in the seas for two months and destroy over 40 ships and 500 lives. About one-third of those who perished were from merchant ships off of the southern coast.
U-boat presence did not end with Operation Paukenschlag, however. For the next five months, Admiral Donitz dispatched as many as 65 U-boats to the US coast with many headed directly to the Hatteras coast, near Diamond Shoals. The US lost most of its vessels during March, from merchant ships to passenger freighters, and the ocean off of the coast of North Carolina became known as the deadliest part of the Atlantic. During this time the government broadcast claims of sinking entire U-boat fleets, announcements that often listed U-boats that were still very much alive as their commanders chuckled as they listened to the radio broadcasts. Propaganda such as "Loose Lips Sink Ships" kept coastal residents quietly curious as they continued to see the explosions and hear the thunder of torpedoes at night. Continues....

Producer