After D-Day 1944, I got my first overseas draft to Freetown, Sierra Leone, West Africa. Two weeks leave, then back to Lowestoft for a train to the troopship at Liverpool. A number of us Lowestoft ratings joined the troop ship “Pasteur”, which had been launched in 1939 and had a French crew.
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| SS "Pasteur" |
A history of the SS "Pasteur" can be found here
It took us about 14 days to get to Sierra Leone, before the anchor was dropped in Freetown harbour.
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| Freetown Harbour - Aerial View |
Those naval, army and RAF servicemen who were for West Africa made ready to disembark. We were taken ashore in the landing craft, about 40 of us.
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| Government Quay, Freetown - |
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| - where Eric and Henry met |
Waiting on the Quay for the navy craft was Eric Wink, a fellow Shannock.
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| Eric and Henry, some years later |
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| Eric Wink just after the war |
We had half an hour together to exchange news before going our separate ways. Those of us naval ratings arriving were taken away, to a transit camp, HMS Eland, to await a ship.
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| HMS Eland, Sierra Leone |
HMS Eland was up-river from Freetown, next to Kline Bay where navy craft were moored. We slept in huts, under mosquito nets, although we had all the inoculations.
Excerpt from Jack Foster in “WWII Peoples War” (BBC; Article ID: A4558584)
“I was relieved in April 1944 to be posted overseas to HMS Eland, the naval base in Freetown, Sierra Leone. West Africa was known as ‘the white man’s grave’ for good reason — it was terribly humid. Malaria, dysentery, tropical ulcers, and prickly heat were endemic. We used to joke that it was ‘the last place that God made after Gateshead’”
We had the usual navy duties including guard, hut cleaning and keeping ourselves tidy. Although discipline was relaxed, we were not allowed from the camp at night, not even in groups.
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| Henry in Tropical Whites 1944 |
After about two weeks, some of us got a ship to go to. Mine, and one of my mates, was a new naval trawler, HMT "Oxna".
