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VX 23630
Private
Eric Ernest Hooper
2/2nd Pioneer Battalion
Service
1941/04/09 - Queen Mary leaves Sydney for Syria
1941/05/03 - Arrived Port of Suez. Next day the troops boarded S.S Ethipoia to travel up the Suez Canal to El Kantra where they boarded a train. Across the deserts of the Sanai region to El Arish. The troops reached Gaza, and the camp named, Hill 95.
After four or five days of preparation A & B companies were given orders to move forward with C & D companies acting as reinforcements in the coming days. Eric was in ‘D’ Company.
1941/06/10 - ‘D’ Company moved on to Banias. The day after they moved forward to the Merdjayuon region to repair road and bridge damage for the other battalions to move forward.
1941/07/07 - They had reached the outskirts of Damour and it was taken. Before the capital Beyrouth was attacked the Vichy French ordered a cease fire. The battalion then moved on to Tripoli and the occupation of Syria.
1941/09/24 - Garrison duties handed over to free French troops.
1942/02/03 - 3000 men boarded the Orcades on their way back from the Middle east to Australia the Orcades was diverted to Java and became ‘Blackforce’
1942/01/30 - Boarded HMT Orcades for unknown destination
1942/02/09 - Passed through Port of Colombo. The next day the HMT Orcades left escorted by HMS Dorsetshire
1942/02/15 - HMT Orcades berthed at Oosthaven Harbour, Batavia, Java
The Pioneers disembarked under the command of Lt-Col A.S. Blackburn
The troops included the 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion and 2/2nd Pioneer Battalion that had fought in Syria, the 2/2nd Casualty Clearing Station (CCS), which had served in the siege of Tobruk. The 2/2nd CCS included amongst its officers the surgeon Edward Weary Dunlop who is renowned as later be a life saver in the PoW Camps.
There was a lack of supplies as the supply ship taking supplies never reached Java. it was eventually turned back to Australia.
1942/02/28 - The Japanese landed on Java and Blackforce was put into the action at Leuwiliang, suffering approximately 100 killed and wounded.
1942/03/08 - Dutch surrender Java to the Japanese
Japanese PoW
1942/03/09 - Proceeded to Arehnem Kampong where they spent four days at a tea plantation after handing over their weapons to the Japanese
After 4 weeks the were ordered to Bicycle Camp, Batavia
Eric was in hut 5 which housed 300 men.
PoW No. 8178
1943/01 - Eric was moved to Makasura Camp
1943/03 - Moved to Tandjong Priok before being sent back to Bicycle Camp for the remainder of 1943, then on to Makasura and then a camp at Serang.
1944/05/19 - Transported to Singapore in the Kiska Maru with Java Party 20
1944/06/03 - Was transported from Singapore in the Miyo Maru with Japan Party 1. The Miyo Maru held a total of 800 PoWs (194 British - 258 Australians - 306 Dutch - 42 Americans).
The convoy sailed via Manila in the Philippines where the cargo ship Tamahoko Maru joined the convoy.
1944/06/14 - The convoy reached Takao, Taiwan but the Miyo Maru had sustained damage in a typhoon on the route to Taiwan. The PoWs were transferred to the Tamahoko Maru.
1944/06/20 - The convoy left Takao, Taiwan for Japan.
1944/06/24 - The convoy was attacked by US Tang off Nagasaki and the Tamahoko Maru was hit and sunk with the loss of 560 lives.
Eric spent 24 hours floating on debris but was among the survivors picked up and taken to Nagasaki, then 200 survivors of the Tamahoko Maru sinking were taken to Fukuoka 14B - Nagasaki
New PoW No. 6411
The PoWs worked for Mitsubishi Heavy Industry Company
Eight PoWs died at the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Nagasaki.
Liberated Fukuoka POW Camp 14B (Saiwai Cho, Nagsaki Shi)
Post War
Full Story - https://erichooper.org/
By Grandson Ty Hooper
Information
The Full Story of Eric Ernest Hooper by Grandson Ty Hooper
Japanese Transports
Java Index
Japanese Homeland
KEW:- WO 361/2009, WO 361/1254, WO 361/2018,
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