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Diseases

Heroes Remember

Diseases

Transcript
Interviewer: The diseases that were going through the camp at that time, do you recall dysentery? Dysentery, malaria, beri-beri, pellagra, diphtheria. I recall at one time when we were back at North Point camp, there was eighty-four people in what we called the ‘Diphtheria Ward' and twenty-one of them come out alive, the others people died. The deaths were at one time, the bugle, the last post was played for each death, and that had to be stopped because the camp was getting too down in spirits and, eventually when these diphtheria people were passing away, we were sometimes putting two and three people in the same grave. Just wrapped in a blanket, that was it, covered up and the other diseases was, well we had what they called the ‘Agony Ward,' that was where we had what we called ‘hot feet'. It was, actually I'd say, a form of torture that's brought on by malnutrition. This hot feet, well it was called hot feet, or electric feet, or I've seen a man sit on his bed, stretch his feet out and, and he had his cane that he was walking with and he beat his feet which he couldn't feel from the outside and call them every name he could think of, and he treated them right and put good shoes and socks on them and they treat them like this. And I remember one of our officers who wasn't particularly liked, got hot foot, and some of our fellows used to go past his hut at night just to hear him moan. It made it seemed to make them feel a little better, but, ‘cause he was suffering too.
Description

Mr Peterson recalls the toll disease took on the POWs in Shamshuipo POW Camp: diphtheria, beri-beri, dysentery, malaria, and hot feet.

George N Peterson

Mr. Peterson was born in Winnipeg February 8, 1921. His family moved to Saint Watell, where he now considers home, when he was five years old. His father was a Veteran of the First World War, having served as a sergeant in Artillery. Having participated in Sea Cadets and the Cameron Cadets previously, with written permission from his father, Mr. Peterson joined the Winnipeg Grenadier Militia as a drummer in the bugle band in January 1938, at the age of 16. Mr. Peterson signed on for active service with the Winnipeg Grenadiers on September 6, 1939, - his twin brother also joined the Grenadiers September 7th, and their father joined the Winnipeg Light Infantry September 12th. Soon after signing on, Mr. Peterson was promoted to Lance Corporal and was made a Mark 4 Vickers machine gun instructor. After Basic Training, his unit was shipped to Jamaica as POW camp reinforcements, but returned to Canada soon after On October 27, 1941, his unit boarded the Awatea in Vancouver, bound for Hong Kong. Captured after capitulating to the Japanese, Mr. Peterson was interned in North Point and Shamshuipo POW camps. While at Shamshuipo he was put to work as slave labour at Kai Tac Airport. Eventually he was sent to Japan to work in a coal mine 120 miles north of Tokyo. After three years and eight months of internment, Japan surrendered to the Americans. Mr. Peterson was reunited with his family soon after.

Meta Data
Medium:
Video
Owner:
Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:
02:43
Person Interviewed:
George N Peterson
War, Conflict or Mission:
Second World War
Location/Theatre:
Asia
Branch:
Army
Units/Ship:
Winnipeg Grenadiers
Rank:
Lance-Corporal

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