Tarawa Atoll is located in the central Pacific Ocean.
It is composed of a chain of coral islets with an area of 23 sq km (about
9 square miles) and a population of 28,802 (in 1990). The capital is
located on the islets of Bairiki.
Tarawa atoll is shaped like a triangle with it's base running pretty
much E-W. The base is a chain of islands and so is the eastern side
right to the tip. The western side is a reef all the way with a big
passage just north of the western corner. Betio is the first island
on the left (W) separated by about two miles to Bairiki. Pronounced 'Bes-she-o'
History
Japanese forces occupied the island on December 9, 1941. On
November 20, 1943, US forces arrived to secure the island. A heavy naval
and aerial bombardment of Betio preceded the landing of 5,000 men of
the 2nd Marine Division. Due to the Coral Reefs around the islands,
American landing craft could not reach the shore. Close to 1,000 Americans
were killed, and over 2,000 wounded during the operation. The war relics
on Betio are a reminder of the thousands of American and Japanese soldiers
killed there in WWII.
American Missions Against Tarawa (Betio)
January 26, 1943 - November 19, 1943
Today
Betio
Island, probably the most populous in Kiribati, has the port, shipyard
and main power station. Betio has a large number of war relics, after
fierce fighting during the major marine assault.arawa is one of the most densely populated areas in the Pacific, and
it's estimated that by the year 2000 it could have a similar population
density to Hong Kong. The locals have made a mess of their island, particularly
in the invasion beach areas. If you go there you will be shocked to
see the vast rubbish dump they have made out of red beach two to the
west side of the original jetty of which only the outline can/could
be seen at low tide.
Betio Lagoon (Tarawa Lagoon)
Jetty, Reef and lagoon area important in the landing.
US Marine War
Memorial
Located at the Prince Philip Park, to honor the USMC
veterans of the Tarawa Battle.
