The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Gunner’s Mate Second Class Hugh K. Harris, United States Naval Reserve, for extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty while serving on board the Battleship U.S.S. SOUTH DAKOTA (BB-57), in connection with a bomb hit sustained by that vessel on 19 June 1944. He was serving as Quad Captain of Number Four 40-mm. Quadruple Mount. He directed the fire of his quad at a Japanese plane making a dive bombing and strafing attack on his vessel. The plane was kept under fire from the beginning of the dive, at least five hits were scored by this quad and the guns were still firing when the bomb exploded a few feet from the quad, killing most of the crew and seriously wounding the others. The plane continued across this vessel and crashed on the opposite side. Although painfully wounded he proceeded to quad five, where the mount captain had been incapacitated by shrapnel wounds, and took charge of the mount crew, and directed fire of this mount during the remainder of the action. His conduct throughout was in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.