William Robert (Bill) MCFARLANE

MCFARLANE, William Robert

Service Number: VX46929
Enlisted: 23 July 1940, Caulfield, Victoria
Last Rank: Gunner
Last Unit: 2nd/4th Anti Tank aka Tank Attack Regiment
Born: Wentworth, New South Wales, 10 February 1920
Home Town: Wentworth, Wentworth, New South Wales
Schooling: Wentworth Central School, Pooncarie
Occupation: Not yet discovered
Died: Died of Illness (POW of Japan), Japan, 27 December 1944, aged 24 years
Cemetery: Yokohama War Cemetery
Aust. Sec. B. D. 12.
Memorials: Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, Wentworth HB1
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World War 2 Service

23 Jul 1940: Enlisted Private, VX46929, Caulfield, Victoria
23 Jul 1940: Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, VX46929
15 Feb 1942: Imprisoned Malaya/Singapore
27 Dec 1944: Involvement Gunner, VX46929, 2nd/4th Anti Tank aka Tank Attack Regiment, Prisoners of War

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Biography contributed by Gary O'CONNOR

After Singapore fell Bill was taken prisoner and spent about 12 months based in Changi and sent to different locations around Singapore doing forced labour – mainly doing "pick and shovel" work and later on at the wharves loading and unloading ships. He was then sent to Thailand by rail in a trip taking 6 days in appalling conditions in open and cramped rail cattle trucks. The Prisoners became part of D Force and were put to work on the Burma-Thai Railway, completing sections at a time including the Wampo Viaduct and Hellfire Pass working 14 hours a day. After surviving working on the Burma Railway, Bill was selected to go to Japan along with 1500 fellow Australians. In July 1944 he was placed in the hold of the Byoki Maru (the sick ship) and along with a convoy of other Ships the Byoki Maru survived torpedo attacks on the convoy from US submarines. After 70 days the Byoki Maru arrived in Japan and Bill was sent to the Fukuoka 2-B prison camp in Nagasaki to work in the Kawanami Shipbuilding dockyards. Bill was detailed drilling rivet holes in the sides of ships on scaffolding 50 to 60 feet high, working 30 days on and 1 day off. Bill died of croup / pneumonia on the 27th December 1944. Most of the above information was extracted from a mate of Bill’s (name unknown) letter, who wrote to Bill’s sister Alice in 2000. He also referred to Frank Christie’s diary.

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