Also Read: A World War II POW who defied Nazis to protect Jewish soldiers will receive the Medal of Honor Because of his heroism, Bush became one of 24 American service members<\/a> to receive the Medal of Honor<\/a> for their actions at the Battle of Okinawa.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cTyphoon of Steel\u201d<\/p>\n Bush grew up around hospitals in Washington state. His mother was a nurse, so her son understood the importance of proper medical care. After Bush dropped out of high school, he joined the U.S. Navy<\/a> Reserve and pursued training as a hospital corpsman.<\/p>\n The 3rd Platoon, Company G, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division arrived on the first day of fighting on Okinawa. It was April 1, 1945, and the U.S. Tenth Army committed 60,000-plus troops<\/a> to break the Japanese\u2019s stronghold on the 465 square-mile island.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Japanese fought to win\u2014it was a savage, brutal, inhumane, exhausting[,] and dirty business,\u201d author E.B. Sledge wrote in his 1981 book, \u201cWith the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa.\u201d \u201cOur commanders knew that if we were to win and survive, we must be trained realistically for it[,] whether we like it or not.\u201d<\/p>\n The American and Japanese forces waged war for a bloody 82 days until the U.S. finally achieved its objective on June 22, 1945. The Battle of Okinawa was so intense that it acquired the nickname \u201cTyphoon of Steel\u201d<\/a> because of its never-ending viciousness.<\/p>\n Hospital corpsmen saw their fellow service members in their most vulnerable moments. On Okinawa, Bush observed more than his fair share.<\/p>\n A Split-Second Decision<\/p>\n Once Bush noticed that Roach needed assistance, he thought about his training. Then he just acted.<\/p>\n \u201cThe rules of the road for the Navy corpsman are that if you\u2019re going to threaten your own life to go out and get him, you\u2019re better off to reserve that, because you\u2019ve got 57 more men [in his platoon] to take care of,\u201d Bush told \u201cLiving History.\u201d<\/a> \u201cI never adhered too much to that.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s a good thing too. Roach didn\u2019t have much time, so Bush rushed toward his platoon leader. Two Marines went with Bush<\/a>\u2014one leading the way and the other to Bush\u2019s rear to protect him from attack. The Japanese killed both of them, leaving Bush alone as he reached Roach. Once he got there, he assured the wounded Marine that everything was going to be fine.<\/p>\n Bush began administering blood plasma to the severely wounded Marine intravenously. As Bush did that, he recalled to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, the Japanese attacked his position. Holding the bottle of plasma up with one hand, Bush reached for Roach\u2019s carbine with his other and began firing. He expended all 15 rounds<\/a>, according to his account for \u201cLiving History.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was just like a shooting gallery,\u201d Bush said. \u201cHow many I shot with that thing, I don\u2019t know\u2026. I was thinking one thing: \u2018If they\u2019re going to take me, then by God, they\u2019re going to pay the bill.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n With Japanese forces diverting Bush\u2019s attention, Roach got up. As Bush shouted for someone to get the platoon leader to safety, the enemy threw three hand grenades toward the hospital corpsman.<\/p>\n Bush instinctively threw up his left arm. That gesture saved his left eye. The explosions cost Bush the sight in his right eye, though, and he incurred other injuries.<\/p>\n The Element of Surprise<\/p>\n Bush was battered but not done fighting.<\/p>\n Despite being badly wounded, he started moving. Armed with two guns<\/a>, he deftly maneuvered himself into a spot behind the Japanese. They could not see him, a fact that played to Bush\u2019s advantage. Bush fired one round for every enemy soldier, he recounted to \u201cLiving History.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen I looked up,\u201d Bush stated. \u201cThere was nobody standing there with me, so I left.\u201d<\/p>\n His Medal of Honor citation<\/a> said Bush refused medical attention until Roach was evacuated. Bush finally collapsed as he walked toward the aid station, but the most important thing is that he survived.<\/p>\n High Death Tolls<\/p>\n More than 12,000 American service members<\/a> died on the island, and the casualties that the U.S. military sustained totaled more than 49,000. The Tenth Army\u2019s commander, Lt. Gen. Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr.<\/a>, didn\u2019t make it home after a shell fragment killed him.<\/p>\n Ninety thousand Japanese service members died in the Battle of Okinawa, per the National World War II Museum<\/a>. The death toll among the island\u2019s citizens reached into the six figures. Some died as a result of the fighting, while others died after the Japanese military ordered them to kill themselves<\/a>.<\/p>\n Bush was one of the lucky ones, and he knew it. He returned home, married his girlfriend, and finished high school. Bush used the GI Bill to attend the University of Washington and became a multimillionaire as a businessman.<\/p>\n When Bush accepted the Medal of Honor from President Harry S. Truman on October 5, 1945, he was one of the youngest people ever to receive the military\u2019s highest award for valor. Bush served as president of the nonprofit Congressional Medal of Honor Society from 1971 to 1973.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to remember that you weren\u2019t the greatest soldier, the greatest medic of all time,\u201d Bush said in his \u201cLiving History\u201d interview<\/a>. \u201cYou were just another one doing your job. The same job that I was doing that day with Jim Roach, I was doing for 31 days before. So my sincere feeling is that we wear the Medal of Honor for those who didn\u2019t get it that should\u2019ve had it and also those that didn\u2019t come home.\u201d<\/p>\n Bush died on November 8, 2005, at the age of 79.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t Miss the Best of We Are The Mighty<\/p>\n \u2022 Why the Army\u2019s longest battle ever involved multiple cease-fires \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t \t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
<\/a>Bush, an 18-year-old hospital corpsman, performed his duties exceptionally well. As the Marines attempted to take Kunishi Ridge on Okinawa, the Japanese shot Bush\u2019s platoon leader, Jim Roach, on May 2, 1945. Bush not only provided medical aid to Roach; he did it while simultaneously defending himself against a counterattack.<\/p>\n![\"Battle](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/battle-of-okinawa-world-war-II-marine-corps.png\")
U.S. Marines battle for control of a ridge near Naha, Okinawa, in May 1945. (U.S. Marine Corps) <\/p>\n![\"Robert](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/robert-e-bush-world-war-II-navy.jpg\")
Artist Morgan Wilbur\u2019s painting depicts Hospital Apprentice First Class Robert E. Bush administering aid to a wounded Marine during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. (U.S. Navy\/Morgan Wilbur) <\/p>\n![\"Battle](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/world-war-II-okinawa-marine-corps.jpg\")
U.S. service members carry a wounded Marine on a stretcher to a medical aid station during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. (U.S. Marine Corps) <\/p>\n![\"Robert](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/robert-bush-receives-medal-of-honor-marine-corps.jpg\")
Corpsman Robert E. Bush receives the Medal of Honor from President Harry S. Truman in Washington, D.C., October 5, 1945. (U.S. Marine Corps) <\/p>\n
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