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Stan was taken into captivity 17th March 1942 at Padang, Sumatra and the living nightmare began.
Japanese Index Card - Side One
Japanese Index Card - Side Two
Stan became part of the British Sumatra Battalion on the 9th May which was formed with 20 officers and 480 other ranks. The service personnel were mostly escapees and considered to be trouble makers.
Leaving Padang, Sumatra by train the British Sumatra Battalion were taken to Fort de Kok. The next day a convoy of lorries took them to Uni Kampong Camp, where Dutch civilians were interned.
On the 15th May they were packed into the hell ship England Maru bound for Mergui, Burma, to build new runways, the death rate at Mergui was twelve.
The 10th of August saw another move on the hell ship Tatu Maru to Ann Hestletine Home at Tavoy, where the death rate fell to five.
The next move to Thanbyuzayat in November was the start of a hard toil on the Thailand to Burma railway, the death rate was high.
“We got taken up and we went into the jungle, and stopped in it for 3.5 years”
Death Railway Map by Philip Cross
The British Sumatra Battalion deaths in Burma:-
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Burma
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Thanbyuzayat
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14
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18 Kilometer Camp
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1
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30 Kilometer Camp
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6
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55 Kilometer Camp
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20
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60 Kilometer Camp
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16
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84 Kilometer Camp
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1
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105 Kilometer Camp
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1
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114 Kilometer Camp
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39
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Stan’s Recollection:-
“Then would go up the line to other camps to work, they ate “blue rice” (” what they use for cow feed”). The rice was full of “livestock” (like weevils / bugs).
Camps “up the line” approx. 35km apart (Stan went to them all)
The further up you got the worse it was as the food/medical supplies didn’t get up the line easily.”
(PoWs spelt the names of camps as their accent dictated, therefore there are many different spellings for the same camps. A common spelling has now been established to help with camp names. In Stan’s recollections, his spellings are used)
Information from Thailand Burma Railway Museum: I have attached our PoW Record showing him captured in Sumatra 17/03/1942 and sent to the Burma End of the Railway 25/05/1942 with what was known as the "British Sumatra Battalion" under Captain Desmond Apthorp 6th Bn. The Royal Norfolk Regiment.
After the railway was completed October 43 and then capable of moving men and equipment late 1943 he was moved down the Railway to Kanchanaburi Thailand where he was stationed at Chungkai, Thailand (60km from Nong Pladuk) until September 1944. He was then sent back up the railway to work cutting wood that was used to run the Steam Locomotives used by the Linson, Thailand (205km from Nong Pladuk).
In December 1944 he was sent back to Chungkai Hospital sick with Diarrhoea and Malaria then to Tha Muang, Taku Butai and finally Pratchai.
New PoW No. 16180
1945/08/15 - Liberated
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