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This story was submitted to the People’s War site by Graham Lewis for Three Counties Action on behalf of Mr Edward L. Hancock and has been added to the site with his permission. Mr Hancock fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

During our retreat from Tiddim I hadn’t taken my boots off for days, as the Japanese were harassing us all the way. I was standing on the top of a hill looking down at 23rd Field Ambulance camped below. I decided to take my boots off and had one in my hand when a shell screamed overhead and exploded in the middle of the Field Ambulance. The boot shot out of my hand and rolled down the hill with me chasing after it.

On the retreat I found a British staff car in an ordnance depot that had been overrun by the Japanese. I knew little about Japanese booby traps at the time so I foolishly tried to start it. I was most fortunate in that, though it wouldn’t start, the only thing the Japanese had done to it was to put dirt in the petrol tank. I cleaned the carburettor and drove it back to Imphal, stopping to get rid of the dirt every so often.

My boss, the lieutenant colonel, was extremely jealous and reported that I had this vehicle; I was ordered to hand it in to the Transport Section.

Arriving at Imphal, we settled into securing the place from the Japanese. This was achieved by June 22, 1944, when the road from Imphal to Kohima was reopened and the first convoy in three months drove along it.

By June 30, the Japanese 33 Division, the ‘White Tigers’ as they called themselves, had lost 12,000 men, 70 per cent of their total strength of around 17,000 men.

The top brass of 17th Division left Imphal for Ranchi to regroup and re-arm, or to go on leave. I was left to hand over 2,500 vehicles to incoming units and left Imphal when this was completed. The lieutenant colonel, hardly a friend, was further irritated by the fact that I had documented and recorded every vehicle hand-over. There was a clear audit trail to satisfy anybody.

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