BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Fernando "Ferny" Hernandez turned 100 years old, and the World War II Navy veteran spent the milestone surrounded by fellow members of the VFW post in Lake Isabella, California, where he has lived for the last 50 years.
Hernandez grew up in East Los Angeles and attended Garfield High School. During Easter vacation of his senior year, he and three friends made a decision that would shape the rest of his life.
"It was during Easter vacation in our senior year of high school. There were 4 of us sitting there doing nothing. And then one of them said, let's join the Navy. So hey, let's go. So we took off and joined the Navy. And they deferred us till after graduation," Hernandez said.
Three of the four friends enlisted. The fourth was later drafted.
The Navy wasted no time. Hernandez graduated on a Thursday, and by Friday morning he was on a bus to San Diego for boot camp.
"We graduated on a Thursday, Friday morning we were on a bus going to San Diego to boot camp," Hernandez said.
After a few weeks of boot camp, he was sent to Oceanside for amphibious training near Camp Pendleton, then transported to Washington to board his ship — the USS Saint Croix, a troop transport vessel.
Hernandez enlisted in 1943, after the Battle of Midway, as the Navy was pushing west across the Pacific. Aboard the Saint Croix, he transported troops throughout the South Pacific. The largest invasion he was part of was in the Philippines.
"The only big invasion we were in was in the Philippines," Hernandez said.
He was not involved in the battles at Okinawa or Iwo Jima. Most of his service involved ferrying replacement troops to islands after major battles had concluded.
"Most of the time we just took replacement troops after the big battle was over. We take some replace some fresh troops into the islands," Hernandez said.
After Japan's surrender, Hernandez and the crew of the Saint Croix were assigned a mission that placed them at one of history's most consequential moments. They transported Seabees — Navy construction battalions — to Bikini Atoll in the Pacific, where the U.S. was preparing to conduct nuclear weapons tests.
"When we got to Bikini, all the natives were being taken out. Bombers came and dropped DDT on the island to kill all the bugs and stuff. And the CBs started building stuff in the island because they were going to drop an atomic bomb. They brought in about 21 useless ships that were worn out, anchored them around the lake," Hernandez said.
While the Seabees worked on the island, the ship's crew had little to do and were allowed ashore.
"About every 5th man that got off the ship they gave him a case of beer, he just sat in the beer at the island there and drank beer while the CBs were working," Hernandez said.
Two atomic bomb tests were conducted at Bikini Atoll. Hernandez recalled that 21 ships were anchored in the lagoon, and approximately 11 did not sink after the first test. A second bomb was dropped months later, sinking the remaining vessels. He noted that Bikini Atoll later became a destination for deep-sea divers exploring the sunken wrecks.
After the Bikini Atoll mission, the Saint Croix returned to the Philippines. From there, the crew transported Army troops into Tokyo Bay as part of the post-surrender occupation force.
"We loaded the ship with soldiers and took them into Tokyo Bay. It was with the first army, I think it was. We had aboard and they were the first soldiers to go into Japan to occupation force," Hernandez said.
The ship stayed in Tokyo Bay for only a day or two before returning to the Philippines.
"We didn't see too much in Tokyo Bay because all we did was unload the army. We stayed there about a day or two and then shipped out," Hernandez said.
On the voyage home, the Saint Croix carried soldiers to San Francisco for discharge. Hernandez recalled the ship listing to one side when the soldiers crowded the rail to see the crowds waiting on the dock.
"All the soldiers got on one side of the ship and our ship started tilting and they all, the captain started yelling, hey, let's get on the other side," Hernandez said.
Hernandez was discharged in San Pedro, California, and returned to East Los Angeles.
Years later, a love of water skiing brought him to Lake Isabella. He and his wife made frequent trips to the lake, and he grew tired of hauling his boat over the canyon road each time.
"The reason I came up here, my wife and I love to water ski, so we come over to water ski. And I got tired of towing my boat over that old canyon road, so I bought property to leave my boat up here. And then I started building. And I built my own place, never knowing I was gonna move up here," Hernandez said.
He eventually made Lake Isabella his permanent home, living in the house he built himself near the high school — a home he still lives in today. Hernandez has been a life member of the VFW for about 30 years.
On his 100th birthday, surrounded by fellow veterans and community members who honored him with several proclamations, Hernandez reflected on the recognition with characteristic humility.
"Never expected all of this. It was very nice of them to do that," Hernandez said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy
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