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| Sunday, 7 April 2002 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Japan attacked Trinco 60 years ago by K.D. Jaysekera, (Trincomalee correspondent)
9th April, 2002 marks the 60th anniversary of the Japanese air raid on Trincomalee during the Second World War. When Colombo was bombed by Japanese war planes on 5th April, 1942, military authorities knew that their next target would be Trincomalee which was a naval and military base. Japan entered World War II in 1941 as an ally of Nazi Germany and Trincomalee was subjected to an air attack on 9th April, 1942. People who lived in Trincomalee at that time did not worry much as most of them found employment under the British Admiralty and War Department. People from other districts came to Trincomalee and settled down here after securing jobs. In fall everybody had some sort of income with a ready market available for vegetables, fruits, fish and other such local products. Around 6.30 a.m. on that fateful day Japanese war planes flying over Trincomalee bombed several important places such as the Naval Dockyard, For Frederick Air Force Base and the oil fuel depot, the latter two located at China Bay. The air attack caused severe loss to lives at the air force base and naval dockyard where civilian workers were already at work. Being an eye witness to the air attack on employee at the Chiana Bay air force base working under an Indian firm erecting huge hangers for the Royal Air Force (now deceased) described the incident thus. "I saw planes six in each group flying over the air force base. Suddenly the planes began to drop some silver coloured objects. The objects exploded on reaching the ground. Then I knew this to be an air attack." "Large number of men were working on the hangers fixing roof and painting and a similar number of men worked on the ground too. Once the explosions began, the men working on the roofs were thrown away like dried leaves carried away by the wind. I immediately crept into a huge concrete cylinder". "After the raid was over I waited for about an hour inside the cylinder before I came out. When I came out I saw large number of dead bodies scattered all over. I looked either way but found no living soul. If there were any they would be hiding through fear. I found a push bicycle and went to the road carrying the bicycle over the dead bodies at certain places.
I sustained a leg injury while crawling into the cylinder but I managed to leave Trincomalee on the push bicycle and went to Anuradhapura where the wound was attended to. I saw a large crowd of people hurrying along the Trincomalee-Anuradhapura road carrying few belongings mostly clothes." According to another eye witness who was a Captain in the Ceylon Light Infantry (CLI) who was also the Commandant of the Essential Services Labour Corp (ESLC) many civilian workers inside the Naval Dockyard died in the air raid. Everything was in a turmoil and the administration totally failed. There were non to attend to the dead. "The dead bodies remained there for about four days before I engaged the ESLC personal to remove the bodies and clear the area. The bodies were burnt near the present war cemetery on the Nilaveli Road". According to other witnesses it was the same at the air force base where the dead bodies were collected and dumped at the verandah of the air force hospital before they too were burnt. It should be recalled that all attempts made by Japanese air force to destroy the oil tanks at Chiana Bay failed and non of the bombs fell on to target. Finally three crew members who belonged to the suicide squad of the Japanese air force dived on to one oil tank (tank No. 91) and the oil caught fire with a big bang when the bombs packed with air craft exploded. That was the only oil tank the enemy could destroy that too at the cost of three lives. The oil burnt for nearly a week and the remnants of the burnt oil tank still remains to tell the tale. Certain parts of the Japanese air craft were later recovered along with the skull of one of the crew members of the suicide air craft. The remnants of the air craft are now kept near the destroyed oil tank around which an iron fence has been erected. The skull has been subsequently removed by someone. The tank farm now belongs to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation. Japanese war planes also bombed several ships including cargo vessels which were at the Trincomalee harbour. It is recorded that non of the planes and the air craft carrier which were instrumental for bombing Trincomalee never returned as all were destroyed by allied forces. It should also be recall that after the bombardment people were so panicked that most of them rushed to the railway station and boarded the 8.30 a.m. train with no tickets and carrying only few clothing and mothers carrying babies. It was a very pathetic scene to watch and people travelled in goods wagons and also in cattle wagons. |
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