Lorna Florence FAIRWEATHER

Lorna Florence FAIRWEATHER. Nursing Sister (Lieutenant) SFX13431 AANS of 2/13th Australian General Hospital.
Born 31 January 1913 at Stirling West, South Australia to Percival Sidney Howard Fairweather and Florence Annie Fairweather, of 78 Galway Avenue Broadview, South Australia.

Some notes for her service records.
Enlisted for service at Wayville, South Australia 11 October 1940 aged 28 years and 5 months and was attached to 2/13th Australian General Hospital
Called up for duty at Camp Hospital, Woodside 30 June 1941
31 August 1941 she entrained from Adelaide to Melbourne for onward journey to Singapore.
She along with other nursing staff of her hospital were at 3 Military District, Victoria at army transit camp,Camp Pell, at Melbourne Cricket Grounds.
Embarked on Hanganella for Singapore 7 October 1941 disembarked Singapore 15 October 1941.
In Singapore she was detached several times to 10th Australian General Hospital for nursing duty then returning to her unit 2/13th A.G.H.
12 February 1942 she along with staff of 2/13th A.G.H., embarked Singapore bound for Australia. She was reported missing presumed killed at sea.
16 February 1942 Deceased whilst a POW. Executed by the Japanese.

She and sixty-four Australian nurses, wounded service men and 250 civilian men, women and children were evacuated on Vyner Brooke from Singapore on the 12 February 1942. The ship was bombed and sunk by Japanese aircraft of Bangka island east of Sumatra on the 14 February 1942. Some of the survivors reached the island only to be captured by the Imperial Japanese Army Some were imprisoned in Palembang and Muntok POW camps others were massacred including twenty-one nurses. On the 16 February 1942 the nurses were ordered to march into the sea and stand in a row where they were shot from behind. She was aged 29. Only one nurse survived, Sister Vivian Bullwinkel.
Commemorated on the Singapore Memorial, Singapore.