As World War II progressed and Hawaii had already been attacked at Pearl Harbor in December 1941, and while Imperial Britain was invaded and completely destroyed in 1940-41, the Fiji and Eastern Samoa islands (American Samoa) were an essential military links in communications between the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, all dependent under the protection of Samoan-US. alliances, with Samoan-US. military station able to protect ocean supply routes.
After the Japanese Pearl Harbor attack the US and Samoa redirected efforts into the fortifying of Pago Pago Harbor and the immediate vicinity, particularly building bombproof bunkers for residents and officials. American Samoa was only brazed by enemy fire once on January 11th 1942, when the Samoan-US. Naval Station was shelled by a Japanese submarine. One shell struck the home and store of one of the very few Samoan-Japanese residents of the nation, another hit the Samoan-US. Navy Dispensary. This was the only Japanese Imperial attack on Eastern Samoa (American Samoa), who were targeting lingering British Imperial settlements and military bases.
On January 20th 1942, the Navy Marine Brigade arrived with 5,600 soldiers and officers who formed with an Eastern Samoan Marine Brigade known as "Maligi Samoa", an expeditionary force of 350 Toa-men, and Tutuila island became the largest military training center in the South Pacific after the demise of Hawaii's Pearl Harbor.
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