Darwin’s role in World War II hits home

For the past nine months, they’ve travelled 35,000km aboard their chariot, a gleaming white Fiat Ducato with an Avan Ovation home on the back. Paula calls it the ‘Hilton’ with a cheeky smile and says the best thing about it is climbing in the cabin and having a wonderful sense of freedom without a worry in the world.

The pair left their home in Corrimal, north of Wollongong, in Christmas 2016, moving all their furniture into storage and handing over the house keys to new tenants to travel around Australia with one thing in mind: Paula wanted to visit Darwin, where her father survived the Darwin Bombing.

Twenty one year old Leslie Leo Campbell, was working in the Royal Australian Navy, onboard the boom defence vessel, HMAS Platypus, protecting the harbour from submarines, when the the Japanese Imperial Army bombed Darwin and surrounds on February 19, 1942.

He survived the bombing, but sadly died 37 years later at the age of 58, and Paula says she knew very little about his experience, “He was so young, and it was so horrific that he never talked about it.”

Paula’s eyes well up with tears as she recalls how she subsequently found out her father watched one of his best mate’s ship blow up before his eyes, “and another who he was working with died in his arms...”

236 people died during the bombing, which left 300 to 400 injured.

During Paula’s visit to Darwin, she discovered an anchor and chain links from the submarine cable on the shores on East Point and placed a loving hand on the warm steel, connecting with her father who probably touched the same steel 75 years ago.

One of her highlights she says was visiting the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

The story of the bombing of Darwin is thoughtfully told at the RFDS, five minutes from the city centre on Stokes Hill Wharf. The vivid and dynamic display includes life-size holograms, full-size Japanese Zero fighter planes, interactive shows, storyboards and amazing virtual reality experiences.

Darwin is a very special place for me and to go to the Royal Flying Doctor Service and see the 3D simulation was very special. You feel you’re actually there living it. I get goose bumps just talking about it, and all I could think of was that my dad was there living all that horror, but it was portrayed in a great way.

Paula is deeply thankful the story is being told again and again. To her, the memorial is an eternal tribute to her father’s effort, “I’m really happy they’re educating the rest of Australia on our history, and hope everyone travelling to the NT goes to experience it.”

The experience stands as a living memorial for the lost souls, and a sobering reminder of the horrors of war, and for Paula, it’s a vital link to a history few of us know. She says it’s something you could go back to time and time again.