Manchester Regiment

1st Battalion

History

From The Manchester Regiment Gazette

Hell Ships

Our fattening up and recuperative period, however, we discovered to be the prelude to yet another big move, for in May 1944 we received our first intimation that large numbers of PoW were to be transferred to Japan. In May and June some 10,000 P0Ws from camps in Thailand were medically inspected and passed as fit to proceed. Among these were Capt. N. K. Evans and about sixty men of the Battalion. Their tragic experience has already been recorded in full in our gazette of April 1946 and is reprinted on page 19. Fifty men died, mostly in the destruction of Japanese transports by Allied planes near the Philippines, whilst a number died from disease and sickness due to the terrible conditions of their voyage. The survivors were picked up and transferred to Formosa. Several men had been disembarked in the Philippines as unfit to proceed further, and were eventually released by the American forces.

At this stage we must hark back once again to Singapore. On 25th April 1943, a party of 32 Manchesters embarked with a ''heavy'' working party for Borneo. They did not reach Borneo, but found themselves at Formosa on the 9th May. They sailed a couple of days later for Japan, and when 42 hours at sea, the ship was blown up and sank rapidly. The Japs abandoned ship and left some 1,500 men to their fate. After about four hours in the water, the survivors were picked up by a Jap destroyer and ultimately reached Nagasaki. They were then transferred to Aomi Camp on Honshu, one of the main islands of Japan. Here they were joined by another party of 25 Manchesters. Of the 57 men of the Regiment in this camp, only four died, a much better state of affairs than befell their comrades in Thailand. Whilst in Japan they were employed in quarries, coal mines and factories.

During May and the early part of June 1944 the Japanese authorities in charge of working parties in Siam received orders to form seventy-two parties, each consisting of one hundred and fifty prisoners intended for work in Japan. I was posted to one of these parties which, together with some others, left Siam on June 6th. We travelled by train to Singapore, where we stayed in a transit camp until June 26th, when we embarked on the Japanese transport Hofoku Maru, a ship of approximately 6,000 tons.

Hofoku Maru

The total number on board was 1287, of which 63 were members of the Regiment. We were divided between two holds and were so crowded that it was impossible for everyone to lie down at once without overflowing on to the centre hatch, which had no protection from the sun or rain except a very old and inefficient tarpaulin which the Japanese seemed to consider was unnecessary until everyone was wet through. The majority of the members of the Regiment were in a different hold from myself, and it was not until we had been on board for the best part of a month that I was able to arrange for us all to be together.

We stayed in Singapore harbour until July 4th, when we sailed in a convoy with seven other ships escorted by two destroyers. On July 9th we arrived at Miri, in Borneo, having broken down for six hours on the way. On arrival we were told that repairs to the engines would have to be carried out, and that we would therefore be stopping there for a few days. Until this time we had been receiving two meals a day of rice and vegetable stew, but unfortunately during our stay here the fresh vegetables, taken on board at Singapore, ran out and the Japanese serjeant in charge of us said that it would be impossible to replace them. We were therefore reduced to rice and salt in the morning and rice and a level tablespoonful of dried fish in the evening. The issue of dried fish was one about the size of a kipper between sixteen men. We continued to exist on this diet, except that on our arrival in Manila the dried fish was replaced by an equal quantity of sweet potato, until September 21st a total of seventy four days.

We were picked tip in Miri by another convoy and sailed on July 14th, arriving in Manila on July 19th. Once again we were informed that the engines were unsatisfactory and that further repairs would have to be carried out. The Japanese civilians who were on board were disembarked and part of the cargo was unloaded. Despite numerous alterations and repairs, however, the boat was not considered fit to put to sea until September.

As can be imagined, our diet, and the fact that after our arrival in Manila we were not allowed on deck, soon began to have serious effects. Fortunately at this time I was able to arrange for the remainder of the Regiment who were on board to come up to the forward hold where I was, and the example that the majority of them set did a lot to keep everyone's spirits up.

Repeated requests to the Japanese to allow us to go ashore were refused, the only concession being that we were allowed to send fifty of the sick ashore to the American P.O.W. Hospital in Manila. Cpl. Newman, L.Cpl. Mahoney and Pte. Ashton were amongst those whom the doctor selected. We also received a small quantity of Red Cross drugs from this hospital, but the majority of them were stolen by the Japanese guards before they reached us. During the whole of this time the doctors, assisted by volunteer orderlies, did excellent work. Three major operations were carried out with absolutely no equipment except what they could make themselves, and I am glad to say that all three were successful. I would particularly like to mention one incident that took place. The doctors decided that it was necessary to give certain of the patients blood transfusions, but were worried because they did not consider that any of the prisoners on board were in a fit condition to spare the blood. However, they decided that they .would have to take this chance and, after explaining all the dangers, they asked for four volunteers. I am glad to say that the four who stepped forward were all members of the Manchester Regiment.

During our stay in Manila Bay a total of ninety-seven deaths occurred on board, five of these being members of the Regiment, On the day before we sailed, over a third of the officers and men on board were unable to walk unaided, and there were a number of mental cases. This was entirely due to underfeeding and to the insanitary and confined conditions under which we were living.

We eventually left Manila on September 20th and sailed with a convoy of seven freight ships and tankers escorted by two destroyers. After having anchored that night we sailed again next morning, and at about eleven o'clock between sixty and seventy planes were seen overhead on their way, as we subsequently learnt, to bomb Manila. A number of these planes left the formation and flew down the convoy, machine-gunning each ship in turn. They then returned and sank all seven ships and also one of the two destroyers. Our ship received three direct hits amidships, broke her back, and sank in under two minutes, taking the majority of the people on board down with her. The behaviour of everyone at this time was really outstanding. There was no panic, and everyone did exactly as they had been instructed. There were insufficient life belts to go round, but those who were lucky enough to have them put them on and everyone made their way to the two small ladders that were the only exits from the hold. As I have already stated there was not enough time for many people to get out before the boat sank. As soon as the first bullet hit the ship all the Japanese guards and the crew, including the captain of the ship, jumped over the side. This was several minutes before the first bomb was dropped. They made absolutely no attempt to release the prisoners.

The majority of the survivors were picked up by the Japanese after having been in the water for about two hours. Some were taken to Manila in fishing-boats which were attacked on their way back, several of them being again sunk. The balance, of which I was one, were taken to Formosa in two Japanese naval vessels. There were approximately thirty prisoners and seventy Japanese who had also been picked up from the water with me on one of these craft. The majority of the prisoners were without any form of clothing, and we were placed on the open deck, in the bows of the destroyer, where we stayed for four days and five nights. During this time we were given nothing to drink and very little food. Despite repeated requests, the Japanese refused to give any medical attention to the prisoners who had been wounded during the sinking. As a result of this, two of them died before reaching Formosa, and two others within twenty-four hours of being landed.

It is extremely difficult to state exactly how many prisoners were lost owing to the fact that all the lists and papers were destroyed when the boats were sunk, but I think that two hundred and, fifty were saved out of the one thousand two hundred and eighty-seven who originally embarked on the Hofoku Maru. Fourteen of the survivors were members of the Regiment.

Death Roll

Hell Ships Deaths

Destination Deaths

Borneo

Died Name Service/No 1945/08/04 Ricketts, Albert William 3526145

Japan

Died Name Service/No 1944/01/22 Haughton, William 3515086 1944/01/23 Mason, Frank 3527186 1944/01/25 George, Harold 3529569 1944/07/13 Lewis, Frederick 3521326 1945/07/06 Warren, Harold 3525376

Taiwan

Died Name Service/No 1943/04/01 Joinson, Thomas William 3529045 1943/08/05 Howard, Alfred Henry William 3534678 1943/08/26 Kerr, Richard 3529721 1943/11/08 Rushton, Roland 3383394 1944/08/01-1944/08/31 Kerr, Andrew 3526960 1944/08/27 Ashton, James 3529668 1944/09/11 Willis, Frank 3533878 1945/01/10 Bennett, Harold Ogden 3533748 1945/03/08 Fletcher, Selwyn 3528035 1945/03/26 Pringle, John Henry 3528022 1945/07/26 Newton, Leslie John 3527364 1945/08/13 Birch, Thomas 3528457

 Previous Page

Home

Next Page

Keeping The Candle Burning

In Memory of FEPOW Family Loved Ones

Who Suffered in the Far East

Thanks for all the support

Designed by Ronnie Taylor

Ronnie.Taylor@fepow.family

© Copyright FEPOW Family