Person Sheet
Birth31 Jan 1913
Death16 Feb 1942
FatherPercival Sidney Howard FAIRWEATHER (1884-1967)
MotherFlorence Annie JOHNSON (1885-1967)
Misc. Notes
Neil Wiltshire’s GrandAunt
84/82/85
30 Jan 1914 is date of birth on John Fairweather’s family tree but in June Fairweather’s birthday book it is 31 Jan 1913
Was a bridesmaid and witness at June and Cliffs wedding8
86On 12 February 1942 during the closing stages of the defence of Singapore, 65 nurses of the 2/4th Casualty Clearing Station, 2/10th and 2/13th Australian General Hospitals - 8th Australian Division were evacuated aboard ss. VYNER BROOKE. On 14 February the ship was bombed and sunk as she passed southward through Bangka Straight.
Although all of the nurses survived the bombing, 12 were either drowned before they could reach life-boats or rafts or were swept out to sea and lost. Others spent up to 3 days endeavouring to reach the shores of Bangka Island, having to contend with tides and currents and to negtotiate coastal mangrove swamps. Some were assisted ashore by the friendly Bangka people.
One group of 22 came ashore at Radji Beach by life-boat and after 2 days, on 16 February 1942, they surrendered to the local Japanese command. They were ordered to walk into the sea where they were machine-gunned by Japanese soldiers. Only one nurse, Sister Vivian Bullwinkel, survived that massacre. Although wounded she feigned death and was later given food by local village women. When she had regained her strength, Sister Bullwinkel surrendered to the Japanese at Mentok and was reunited with her colleagues to spend the following three and a half years as a prisoner-of-war.
___________________________________________________________________________
87Sister Lorna Florence Fairweather, 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS). She was one of sixty five Australian nurses and over 250 civilian men, women and children evacuated on the Vyner Brooke from Singapore, three days before the fall of Malaya. The Vyner Brooke was bombed by Japanese aircraft and sunk in Banka Strait on 14 February 1942. Of the sixty five nurses on board, twelve were lost as sea and thirty two survived the sinking and were captured as Prisoners of War (POWs) of which eight later died during captivity. Sister Fairweather, aged 30, was one of the remaining twenty two nurses who also survived the sinking and were washed ashore on Radji Beach, Banka Island, where they surrendered to the Japanese, along with twenty five British soldiers. On 16 February 1942 the group was massacred, the soldiers were bayoneted and the nurses were ordered to march into the sea where they were shot.
___________________________________________________________________________
(from a news cutting from June Fairweather) Sister Lorna Florence Fairweather who is amongst the number of South Australian nurses missing since the fall of Singapore, commenced her nursing career at “Mareeba” Babies’ Hospital, where she won the Hugh Covernton prize for highest marks in Theory and Practice, and then completed her training at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, gaining the coveted “credit” in the final examination. After graduating, Sister Fairweather did staff duty at “Mareeba” and the Crippled Children’s Home at Somerton, first as charge sister and then as relieving matron. In 1940 she enlisted in the A.A.N.S. and left South Australia in August, 1941, sailing for Malaya, where she was attached to the 13th A.G.H. This unit left Singapore on board the ill-fated “Vyner Brooke.”
_________________________________________________________________________
Title
Army Medical & Dental Corps. Nurses and Specialists [Applications for Australian Army Nursing Service (A.A.N.S.)] - L F Fairweather
Series Number MP508/1 Item Number 21/723/231 Date Range 1940 to 1940
Access Status NONE Location VIC
82In Memory of
Lorna Florence Fairweather Sister
SFX13431
A.I.F. 13 Gen. Hosp., Australian Army Nursing Service
who died on
Monday, 16th February 1942. Age 29.
Additional
Information: Daughter of Percival Sidney Howard Fairweather and Florence
Annie Fairweather, of Broadview, South Australia.
Commemorative Information
Memorial: SINGAPORE MEMORIAL,
Grave Reference/
Panel Number: Column 141.
Location:
In the Far East at Singapore, the Singapore Memorial bears, on its columns, the names of over 24,000 soldiers and airmen of the British Commonwealth and Empire who have no known grave. The airmen whose names are inscribed on the Memorial died during operations over the whole of southern and eastern Asia and the surrounding seas and oceans.
The Memorial stands in Kranji War Cemetery. The central avenue of the Cemetery rises gently from the Stone of Remembrance, near the entrance, to the Cross of Sacrifice, beyond which flights of steps lead to a terrace on top of a hill on which the Memorial stands.
Twelve wide columns bear the name panels and support a flat roof, which gives protection to the inscribed names and shade and shelter to the visitor. Rising through the roof in the centre, to a height of 24 metres, is a great pylon surmounted by a star. On a curved panel at the foot of this pylon are inscribed in English these words:
1939 - 1945 ON THE WALLS OF THIS MEMORIAL ARE RECORDED THE NAMES OF TWENTY-FOUR THOUSAND SOLDIERS AND AIRMEN OF MANY RACES UNITED IN SERVICE TO THE BRITISH CROWN WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN MALAYA AND NEIGHBOURING LANDS AND SEAS IN THE AIR OVER SOUTHERN AND EASTERN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC BUT TO WHOM THE FORTUNE OF WAR DENIED THE CUSTOMARY RITES ACCORDED TO THEIR COMRADES IN DEATH.
Kranji War Cemetery is 22 kilometres north of the city of Singapore, on the north side of Singapore Island overlooking the Straits of Johore. It is just off the Singapore-Johore road (Woodlands road) at milestone 13 1/2 and there is a short approach road from the main road.
The Cemetery is known locally as Kranji Memorial, and one must be sure of the address before boarding a taxi as many taxi drivers do not know the Cemetery. There are also bus stops on the main road facing the Cemetery and an MRT terminal is under construction a short distance from the Cemetery.
There is a certificate from the Commonwealth forces on the internet at:
http://yard.ccta.gov.uk/cwgc/register.nsf
_________________________________________________________________________
88Name:
FAIRWEATHER, LORNA FLORENCE
Initials:
L F
Nationality:
Australian
Rank:
Sister
Regiment/Service:
Australian Army Nursing Service
Unit Text:
A.I.F. 13 Gen. Hosp.
Age:
29
Date of Death:
16/02/1942
Service No:
SFX13431
Additional information:
Daughter of Percival Sidney Howard Fairweather and Florence Annie Fairweather, of Broadview, South Australia.
Casualty Type:
Commonwealth War Dead
Grave/Memorial Reference:
Column 141.
Memorial:
SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
87SA. Paybook photograph, taken on enlistment, of SFX13431 Sister Lorna Florence Fairweather, 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS). She was one of sixty five Australian nurses and over 250 civilian men, women and children evacuated on the Vyner Brooke from Singapore, three days before the fall of Malaya. The Vyner Brooke was bombed by Japanese aircraft and sunk in Banka Strait on 14 February 1942. Of the sixty five nurses on board, twelve were lost as sea and thirty two survived the sinking and were captured as Prisoners of War (POWs) of which eight later died during captivity. Sister Fairweather, aged 30, was one of the remaining twenty two nurses who also survived the sinking and were washed ashore on Radji Beach, Banka Island, where they surrendered to the Japanese, along with twenty five British soldiers. On 16 February 1942 the group was massacred, the soldiers were bayoneted and the nurses were ordered to march into the sea where they were shot. Only Sister Vivian Bullwinkel and a British soldier survived the massacre. Both were taken POW, but only Sister Bullwinkel survived the war. Sister Fairweather was the daughter of Mr P. S. Fairweather of Broadview, SA. (Photograph copied from original photograph attached to attestation form, lent by Central Army Records Office.)
84/82/85
30 Jan 1914 is date of birth on John Fairweather’s family tree but in June Fairweather’s birthday book it is 31 Jan 1913
Was a bridesmaid and witness at June and Cliffs wedding8
86On 12 February 1942 during the closing stages of the defence of Singapore, 65 nurses of the 2/4th Casualty Clearing Station, 2/10th and 2/13th Australian General Hospitals - 8th Australian Division were evacuated aboard ss. VYNER BROOKE. On 14 February the ship was bombed and sunk as she passed southward through Bangka Straight.
Although all of the nurses survived the bombing, 12 were either drowned before they could reach life-boats or rafts or were swept out to sea and lost. Others spent up to 3 days endeavouring to reach the shores of Bangka Island, having to contend with tides and currents and to negtotiate coastal mangrove swamps. Some were assisted ashore by the friendly Bangka people.
One group of 22 came ashore at Radji Beach by life-boat and after 2 days, on 16 February 1942, they surrendered to the local Japanese command. They were ordered to walk into the sea where they were machine-gunned by Japanese soldiers. Only one nurse, Sister Vivian Bullwinkel, survived that massacre. Although wounded she feigned death and was later given food by local village women. When she had regained her strength, Sister Bullwinkel surrendered to the Japanese at Mentok and was reunited with her colleagues to spend the following three and a half years as a prisoner-of-war.
___________________________________________________________________________
87Sister Lorna Florence Fairweather, 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS). She was one of sixty five Australian nurses and over 250 civilian men, women and children evacuated on the Vyner Brooke from Singapore, three days before the fall of Malaya. The Vyner Brooke was bombed by Japanese aircraft and sunk in Banka Strait on 14 February 1942. Of the sixty five nurses on board, twelve were lost as sea and thirty two survived the sinking and were captured as Prisoners of War (POWs) of which eight later died during captivity. Sister Fairweather, aged 30, was one of the remaining twenty two nurses who also survived the sinking and were washed ashore on Radji Beach, Banka Island, where they surrendered to the Japanese, along with twenty five British soldiers. On 16 February 1942 the group was massacred, the soldiers were bayoneted and the nurses were ordered to march into the sea where they were shot.
___________________________________________________________________________
(from a news cutting from June Fairweather) Sister Lorna Florence Fairweather who is amongst the number of South Australian nurses missing since the fall of Singapore, commenced her nursing career at “Mareeba” Babies’ Hospital, where she won the Hugh Covernton prize for highest marks in Theory and Practice, and then completed her training at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, gaining the coveted “credit” in the final examination. After graduating, Sister Fairweather did staff duty at “Mareeba” and the Crippled Children’s Home at Somerton, first as charge sister and then as relieving matron. In 1940 she enlisted in the A.A.N.S. and left South Australia in August, 1941, sailing for Malaya, where she was attached to the 13th A.G.H. This unit left Singapore on board the ill-fated “Vyner Brooke.”
_________________________________________________________________________
Title
Army Medical & Dental Corps. Nurses and Specialists [Applications for Australian Army Nursing Service (A.A.N.S.)] - L F Fairweather
Series Number MP508/1 Item Number 21/723/231 Date Range 1940 to 1940
Access Status NONE Location VIC
82In Memory of
Lorna Florence Fairweather Sister
SFX13431
A.I.F. 13 Gen. Hosp., Australian Army Nursing Service
who died on
Monday, 16th February 1942. Age 29.
Additional
Information: Daughter of Percival Sidney Howard Fairweather and Florence
Annie Fairweather, of Broadview, South Australia.
Commemorative Information
Memorial: SINGAPORE MEMORIAL,
Grave Reference/
Panel Number: Column 141.
Location:
In the Far East at Singapore, the Singapore Memorial bears, on its columns, the names of over 24,000 soldiers and airmen of the British Commonwealth and Empire who have no known grave. The airmen whose names are inscribed on the Memorial died during operations over the whole of southern and eastern Asia and the surrounding seas and oceans.
The Memorial stands in Kranji War Cemetery. The central avenue of the Cemetery rises gently from the Stone of Remembrance, near the entrance, to the Cross of Sacrifice, beyond which flights of steps lead to a terrace on top of a hill on which the Memorial stands.
Twelve wide columns bear the name panels and support a flat roof, which gives protection to the inscribed names and shade and shelter to the visitor. Rising through the roof in the centre, to a height of 24 metres, is a great pylon surmounted by a star. On a curved panel at the foot of this pylon are inscribed in English these words:
1939 - 1945 ON THE WALLS OF THIS MEMORIAL ARE RECORDED THE NAMES OF TWENTY-FOUR THOUSAND SOLDIERS AND AIRMEN OF MANY RACES UNITED IN SERVICE TO THE BRITISH CROWN WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN MALAYA AND NEIGHBOURING LANDS AND SEAS IN THE AIR OVER SOUTHERN AND EASTERN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC BUT TO WHOM THE FORTUNE OF WAR DENIED THE CUSTOMARY RITES ACCORDED TO THEIR COMRADES IN DEATH.
Kranji War Cemetery is 22 kilometres north of the city of Singapore, on the north side of Singapore Island overlooking the Straits of Johore. It is just off the Singapore-Johore road (Woodlands road) at milestone 13 1/2 and there is a short approach road from the main road.
The Cemetery is known locally as Kranji Memorial, and one must be sure of the address before boarding a taxi as many taxi drivers do not know the Cemetery. There are also bus stops on the main road facing the Cemetery and an MRT terminal is under construction a short distance from the Cemetery.
There is a certificate from the Commonwealth forces on the internet at:
http://yard.ccta.gov.uk/cwgc/register.nsf
_________________________________________________________________________
88Name:
FAIRWEATHER, LORNA FLORENCE
Initials:
L F
Nationality:
Australian
Rank:
Sister
Regiment/Service:
Australian Army Nursing Service
Unit Text:
A.I.F. 13 Gen. Hosp.
Age:
29
Date of Death:
16/02/1942
Service No:
SFX13431
Additional information:
Daughter of Percival Sidney Howard Fairweather and Florence Annie Fairweather, of Broadview, South Australia.
Casualty Type:
Commonwealth War Dead
Grave/Memorial Reference:
Column 141.
Memorial:
SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
87SA. Paybook photograph, taken on enlistment, of SFX13431 Sister Lorna Florence Fairweather, 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS). She was one of sixty five Australian nurses and over 250 civilian men, women and children evacuated on the Vyner Brooke from Singapore, three days before the fall of Malaya. The Vyner Brooke was bombed by Japanese aircraft and sunk in Banka Strait on 14 February 1942. Of the sixty five nurses on board, twelve were lost as sea and thirty two survived the sinking and were captured as Prisoners of War (POWs) of which eight later died during captivity. Sister Fairweather, aged 30, was one of the remaining twenty two nurses who also survived the sinking and were washed ashore on Radji Beach, Banka Island, where they surrendered to the Japanese, along with twenty five British soldiers. On 16 February 1942 the group was massacred, the soldiers were bayoneted and the nurses were ordered to march into the sea where they were shot. Only Sister Vivian Bullwinkel and a British soldier survived the massacre. Both were taken POW, but only Sister Bullwinkel survived the war. Sister Fairweather was the daughter of Mr P. S. Fairweather of Broadview, SA. (Photograph copied from original photograph attached to attestation form, lent by Central Army Records Office.)
Spouses