Home safe at last in Seattle, the battered Laffey prepares to display her battle scars to an American public for whom whe fought so hard. Black area to the left of gun is the after deckhouse where two kamikazes crashed in rapid succession.
One of the Laffey's 40-mm antiaircraft gun mounts, showing the destruction caused by burning gasoline and shell explosions. The rack inside the mount's shield held ammunition. Some was tossed over the side by her men, but some exploded, making holes in the deck.
A sign on Laffey's starboard side and the empty base on which a 20-mm mount was once bolted is mute testimony to the courage and sacrifices of her men off Okinawa. It was here that a bomb hit the ship, destroying the gun and killing three.