the battle fl okinawa happened 69 years ago at the tail end of world war ii. fighting between u.s. and japanese forces raged for months leaving 200,000 people dead. many civilians lost their lives. nearly 2,000 tried to evacuate but drowned after u.s. forces sank their ship. the story isn't well-known. survivors have been trying to change that. >> reporter: this man has long wanted to have been visit the memory museum. he and the empress went there on friday for first time. they offered prayers for nearly 1,500 people who died when the cargo ship sank. in august 1944, this ship was carrying ee vac ease from okinawa. they were following a government order to leave the islands before they became a major battleground. but u.s. forces torpedoed the ship. two-thirds of the victims were younger than 15 years old. japanese military commanders banned the news from being made public. many didn't know about the sinking until after the war. this man is one of the survivors. he gave the couple a tour of the museum. >> translator: i want everyone to know that war is terrible and that even littl