Peleliu: Wwii's Most Well-Preserved Battlefield

Sat, Nov 9 4:00 P.M. NH World (11.3)

Narrated by actor Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights, Bloodline), PELELIU: WWII's MOST WELL-PRESERVED BATTLEFIELD explores the impact that World War II had on a small island in the Palau archipelago in Micronesia. The remote island of Peleliu is considered the most well-preserved battlefield in the world - a living testament to one of the Marines' most bitter and eye-opening fights in World War II. Because it is illegal to remove any relic from the island, the battlefield remains almost as it was when the fight here ended in the fall of 1944. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the Marine and Army battle, which was supposed to last three days but instead took 72 days of hard fighting to eliminate the Japanese from 500 caves on the island. While the film focuses on the island today, viewers also hear from Marines who had to battle on the ridges and in the valleys of Peleliu. It also explores how Cleared Ground Demining, a British organization working on the island today, is attempting to remove any live ordnance remaining from the fight on Peleliu. In just 10 years, the non-profit company has removed more than 60,000 bombs, hand grenades, mines, artillery shells, and other live munitions.

Episode Duration: 56 minutes and 46 seconds

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