Territory Stories

Tak Wong

Details:

Title

Tak Wong,

Name

Tak Wong,

Also known as

Wong, Tak,

Collection

WWII Roll of Honour, HistoryNT, Second World War, 1939-1945,

Date

2021,

Occupation

Seaman,

Unit

MV Neptuna,

Date of death

1942-02-19,

Place of death

MV Neptuna,

Memorial

Hong Kong Memorial, China,

Biographical notes

Wong Tak was a 34 year old seaman on the MV Neptuna. Further information on his life has yet to be discovered. The Neptuna had a Hong Kong registration, and had been doing the Hong Kong - Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) run, which explains her predominantly Chinese crew. She arrived in Darwin Harbour loaded with two hundred depth charges and a very large quantity of anti-aircraft shells for the Navy and Army. When the Japanese air attack began, the Neptuna was berthed alongside the main wharf awaiting maintenance. The first bomb hit the ship below the waterline and she began taking on water; she then received a direct hit causing her to catch on fire. When the fire entered No. 3 and No. 4 hatches, the Neptuna blew apart, creating a huge mushroom cloud caused by the explosion of the ammunition she was carrying. Most of the surviving ship's company were rescued from the wharf and the harbour and taken aboard HMAS Platypus, a depot ship being used as a casualty clearing station. Thirty-six of the ship's crew were killed, including the Master, Captain William Michie.,

Notes

Metadata: Attribution International 4.0 (CC-BY 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, Photo from Australian War Memorial, Public Domain.,

Language

English,

Subject

Second World War, 1939-1945, Bombing of Darwin, Roll of Honour, Northern Territory history, MV Neptuna,

File type

image/jpeg,

Use

No known copyright,

Copyright owner

Australian War Memorial,