They used outdated equipment, such as an 8- to pound hammer and tap, carried supplies up and down uneven rock surfaces, faced fears of heights while standing next to cliff faces, and overcame the dangers of working around the clock despite illness and fatigue.
While constructing the Wampo Viaduct , a series of trestle bridges that runs along the river Kwai, A. Field and L. Elephants walked alongside, aiding in moving equipment and using their trunks to carry out felled trees.
Some stems of bamboo took five or six men to extract from the earth, and the exhaustive work had great consequence. The worst aspect of bamboo clearing was avoiding the prickly thorns that were sharp enough to impale the skin.
It would often need to be amputated. They worked, ate, and slept on tiny bamboo mats without blankets or cover as their skin rubbed raw. Malaria-carrying mosquito populations exploded. One method to increase efficiency was to use a tanka, one pole of bamboo carried on the shoulders of two men while buckets hung on either side. This method had its limits because the monsoons made the soil run with water and mud, which caused slippery surfaces. The most horrifying section of the railroad took its toll on hundreds of Australian POWs and had an infamous reputation.
At one camp, upwards of leg amputations were performed as a result of jungle ulcers — without even so much as an aspirin for the pain. This expedited the work to ensure that the average 1 meter of cutting per day was expanded to 2 to 3 meters.
Hellfire Pass was cut 75 meters long and 25 meters deep; at that pace, many died where they stood the previous day. It was later determined that for every railroad sleeper laid, one POW died. A piece of Hellfire Pass that spanned 3. It fell on three separate occasions, killing the morale, angering the Japanese, and ending the bloody progress they worked so hard to achieve. If a prisoner refused to obey, he would be smacked across the face or beaten, most likely by an officer to discourage others from doing the same.
The relentless work of the POWs was never rewarded with rest, only punished with force. Despite all the suffering and death, there was a small sliver of hope that they would make it out alive.
So we really had no time to think about the human cost. Among so many men in camp we had access to qualified experts in a wide range of fields, and all of us became skilled at the art of improvisation.
The Japanese left him for dead, but Dunlop cared for him until the end of the war. Some locals were sympathetic to allied POWs and risked it all to bring aid. Boon Pong Sirivejjabhandu sacrificed a successful business and prosperity for several years. Three sections of Bridge River Kwai were destroyed. The present bridge has two of its central spans rebuilt. The original parts of the bridge are now displayed in the War Museum.
The Bridge River Kwai became famous all over the world, when it was featured in movies and books. The cliff-hugging tracks and the natural beauty of the surrounding mountains and valleys are well captured in the David Lean movie. Bridge River Kwai is a tourist destination now.
The track is developed into a walkway with side platforms. This allows crossing the railway bridge on foot. These platforms are useful as viewpoints and for avoiding trains.
A small tourist train runs back and forth across the bridge. Spectacular light and sound show is the highlight of the festival. Kanchanaburi Town is located kms to the west of Bangkok.
Regular buses ply the route from Southern Bus Terminal in Bangkok. Donor B. Evans Wampo Wang Po , Thailand. September The Wampo tiered viaduct built along the edge of the Kwai Noi River. The two main viaducts followed the bottom of the cliff for some distance. A ledge had to be carved out of the cliff face to form a base for the bridge and embankment construction. It was a dangerous and exhausting task for the POW work force. Wampo is approximately kilometres north of Nong Pladuk also known as Non Pladuk , or kilometres south of Thanbyuzayat.
Mackinnon Kanchanaburi, Thailand, A memorial plaque erected on the southern bank of the River Kwai, at one end of the bridge which was built over the river by allied prisoners-of-war POWs and Asian labourers from various countries. The inscription on the plaque reads: "Thai-Burma Railway Line. The total length of line constructed was kms. Construction work started in October A year later on 23 October rail laying was completed.
About 60, men consisting of Indian, Burmese, Malaysian, Indonesian, Chinese and Thai labourers as well as prisoners of war took part in the construction work. The diesel power traction car shown here was used during the construction. It could be run either on road or railway track. The road wheels would be lowered into position when required. The steam locomotive shown was employed for military transport service on this line.
Wampo is approximately kilometres north of Nong Pladuk, or kilometres south of Thanbyuzayat. A diesel rail car passing over the long trestle bridge commonly known as the Wampo viaduct. This tiered viaduct was built along the edge of the Kwai Noi river. The two main sections of the viaduct followed the bottom of the cliff for some distance. It was a dangerous and exhausting task for the prisoner of war POW work force. Strengthened and rebuilt to the original design in the post-war years, the viaduct forms part of the railway which is still operational as far as Namtok Tarsau.
In speeding up construction work the Japanese Army built a temporary railway bridge across the River Kwae Yai downstream close to the existing bridge. After completion of the existing bridge composing of 11 steel spans with the rest of timber spans, the temporary bridge was dismantled to ease off river traffic inconvenience.
Three steel spans nos. After taking over the line the State Railway of Thailand replaced the three damaged spans with two steel spans and changed all timber spans at the far end with six steel spans.
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