Recife, when she received a communication that informed her captain that the Japanese had attacked the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. She was ordered to "execute WPL (war plan) 46 (Rainbow 5) against Japan." Captain Chandler mustered the crew to read them the message. On 8 December, the US Congress would officially declare war on Japan with Germany declaring war on the US three days later, on 11 December 1941. Merchant sinkings While Omaha was on patrol with Jouett on 8 May 1942, she came across the Swedish ship Astri. Omahas boarding party found Ensign John F. Kelly, USNR, from the US freighter , along with six members of her armed guard detachment and eight crewmen. She had been sunk on 23 April, by (Kapitänleutnnt Ulrich Folkers) southeast of Bermuda. The men had drifted for two days before being picked up. The Office of Naval Operations (OpNav) had informed Omaha that they suspected the Swedish ship of being a tender for German U-boats. Jouett was left to investigate Astri while Omaha set a course to Recife, with the survivors of Lammot Du Pont. Having been pointed to the area by a patrolling aircraft, the destroyer was able to rescue another 23 survivors from Lammot Du Pont on 16 May. Omaha spotted a light on the horizon at 01:30, on 1 June 1942. The light was from a small lifeboat with eight surviving crewmen aboard from the sunken British merchant Charlbury. She had been heading to Buenos Aires, Argentina, when she had been attacked on 28 May, by the . The first torpedo fired by Barbarigo had missed Charlbury, at which point the submarine surfaced to attack with her deck guns before submerging again. With her second torpedo attack Barbarigo struck Charlbury which caused the merchant to sink by the stern. Omaha went on to pull another 32 survivors of the sinking from the water and transported all of them to Recife. On 8 June 1942, only a week later, eight British seamen, from the British merchant Harpagon, where found aboard the Argentinian merchantman Rio Diamante by Omaha. They were the only survivors, 41 had died in the 20 April, attack by (Kapitänleutnant Heinrich Bleichrodt) near the island of Bermuda. The survivors, being adrift for 35 days, stayed in Rio Diamante, which transported them to Buenos Aires, Argentina. In a two-day period, 16–17 August 1942, five Brazilian merchantmen were sunk by