Destroyer Kuroshio

Kuroshio was a Kagerō-class destroyer built at Fujinagata Shipyards (Osaka), laid down 31 August 1937, launched 25 October 1938, and commissioned 27 January 1940. She was initially flagship of Destroyer Division 16 and later served in Destroyer Division 15.

At the outbreak of the Pacific War she did not accompany the Pearl Harbor force; instead she escorted the light carrier Ryūjō in support of the invasion of the southern Philippines, suffering minor strafing damage on 23 December 1941. She then took part in operations in the Dutch East Indies and in the Midway operation, and from the second half of 1942 was heavily engaged in the Guadalcanal campaign, making multiple Tokyo Express runs and fighting at the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands (26 October) and the Battle of Tassafaronga (30 November), where one of her torpedoes may have hit the cruiser USS Pensacola.

On the night of 7–8 May 1943, Kuroshio took part in a troop transport run to Vila on Kolombangara Island. As the destroyers were leaving Vila they ran into a newly laid American minefield. Kuroshio struck mines and sank rapidly at approximately 8°08′S 156°55′E, with the loss of 83 of her crew.

Sister ships Kagerō and Oyashio were disabled by mines at the same time and, lying dead in the water, were sunk later that day after Allied air attacks. It was one of the worst mine-related disasters for the IJN in the Solomons campaign. Kuroshio's wreck was found in 2002 by Robert Ballard's expedition at a depth of about 1,300 feet.