The Ship

The Kachidoki Maru, originally the American cargo ship President Harrison, was captured by the Japanese early in World War II and repurposed as a transport vessel. On September 12, 1944, while transporting Allied prisoners of war from Singapore to Japan, the ship was torpedoed and sunk by the USS Pampanito in the South China Sea.

The Prisoners

Among the ship’s human cargo were more than 900 Allied POWs, primarily British soldiers who had survived years of captivity in Southeast Asia. When the torpedoes struck, the ship was part of a convoy and unmarked as a prison transport. Over 400 POWs perished in the attack, many trapped below deck or lost at sea.

“We didn’t know where we were going. Only that we weren’t expected to survive the trip.” — Sgt. Frederick Dalton, Kachidoki Survivor

Rescue and Survival

Survivors were rescued by Japanese ships in the convoy and continued their harrowing journey aboard the Rakashu Maru. The tragedy was compounded by illness, starvation, and further attacks. Fewer than half of those aboard the Kachidoki Maru lived to see the war’s end.

Legacy

The sinking of the Kachidoki Maru highlights the danger of transporting POWs on unmarked vessels in combat zones. The Hellships Memorial honors the memory of those who died on this and other ships, and reminds us of the war's human cost.

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