My ship left without me in Singapore as Japanese approached

Walter Leslie Hughes served as a Corporal in the RAF. He was in Singapore with 36 Squadron, one day when he was with six other men, they tried to return to the ship, when they discovered the Navy ship had sailed without them and had left them stranded.

They tried to make their way to Johor, failed to do so and just carried on walking. They then met some of the Japanese invading troops and surrendered to them.

They were all taken to a Prisoner of War camp being run by the Japanese in Singapore. During their time in the camp, they were put to work and a copy of a pay book was shown, the sons were not sure, what the pay consisted of, whether food rations or money.

Water kept himself busy in camp, by compiling lists on scraps of paper he could get hold of. His prized possession was a bamboo fan that he obtained, and, on which, he wrote the names of many men who were confined in the camp with him. This fan he managed to bring home with him after the war.

The fan was taken after the war to the Imperial War Museum, who put him in touch with an expert who interviewed him and compiled a folder, including the names on the fan, which has been instrumental in tracing relatives of deceased prisoners of war. This document has been filed away and is not on public show.

After being freed from the camp, Walter was on HMS Implacable, which took him and the other freed prisoners to Vancouver. After the war, Walter worked as a Refrigeration Engineer until he retired.