Arthur W. Wermuth - World War II - Captivity

Captivity

Wermuth's injuries forced him to remain in a Japanese hospital until May 25, 1942 when he was transported to New Bilibid Prison. His injuries spared him from the Bataan Death March. After Bilibid, he was transported via boxcar to a camp near Cabanatuan. In September, he was sent to Lipa City, Batangas and placed in charge of a 500-man work detail to construct a runway. During the construction, his crew deliberately sabotaged the runway so that it buckled under the weight of landing bombers. His injuries forced him to be sent back to Bilibid in January, 1943, where he was operated on April, 1943 by an American surgeon who was also in captivity. In June, he was sent back to Cabanatuan to join a farming detail. In January, 1944 his detail was being worked to the point where men were collapsing in the manure. When he demanded that the Japanese commander take it easy on his men, he received a severe beating, damaging his kidneys and sending him back to a hospital.

On October 13, 1944, he was transferred back to Bilibid until December, when he boarded the "hell ship" Oryoku Maru as one of 1620 prisoners. Because the prison ship was unmarked, it was bombed December 15, 1944 at Olongapo in Subic Bay by aircraft from USS Hornet who mistook it for a troop transport, killing several hundred POWs. Wermuth survived the bombing and was transported by boxcar to San Fernando. 160 men were placed in his car and as there was no room to move or sit, were forced to stand for the duration of the 26-hour trip. According to Wermuth, the man beside him died on his feet and was held in place by the crowd for the rest of the trip since there was no room to remove the corpse. In January, 1945, he was transported to Formosa aboard the Enoura Maru. Wermuth received his fourth Purple Heart due to the injuries sustained when bombers from the USS Hornet attacked Enoura Maru. Next he was transported to Japan, then to Pusan, Korea, then to Mukden, where his prison camp was liberated by the Russians in August, 1945. When he was found, he weighed 105 pounds (48 kg), having weighed 190 pounds (86 kg) earlier in the war. Wermuth returned to the United States on the transport SS Marine Shark, arriving November 1, 1945 in San Francisco. On his return, he modestly credited the Filipino scouts for many of his exploits saying, "Ninety percent of the credit for what I did was due to them. They're the best soldiers in the world. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time."