Oil smoke!
Hundreds of oil wells had been set ablaze, and the fire raged on. Even the millions of tons of stored oil were set alight by the Japanese.
Ten days earlier, after the completion of "Operation Oboe One," the First and Second Reinforced Brigades of the Garrison Forces, along with the Third and Fifth Infantry Regiments and the Second Armored Regiment, landed east of Balikpapan.
The defenders at Balikpapan were the Japanese Navy's 22nd Special Base Service Unit and about 10,000 Japanese oilfield workers. Before the landing, American air and naval bombardment provided covering fire, making the landing itself go smoothly. But as the forces pushed inland, they encountered fierce Japanese resistance.
To stop the advance, the Japanese set the oil fields on fire. Flames shot dozens of meters into the air from distant wells, thick smoke shrouded the sky, and the blackness turned day into night.
Yet, even so, they still couldn't stop the advance of the Garrison Forces.
