World War two
Bridges over the River Mae Klong
(renamed Kwa Yai)
and
Tamarkan POW camp
Started in October 1942, using prisoner of war (POW) labour, it was completed and operational by February 1943.
Both the wooden and the adjacent steel bridge were subjected to numerous air raids between January and June 1945. POW labour was used to repair the wooden bridge on each occasion.
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The image shows the two bridges built by the Japanese, using prisoner of war (POW) labour, which spanned the Mae Klong river (renamed Kwa Yai river in 1960).

The wooden trestle bridge was completed in February 1943, and the steel bridge in April 1943.

This eleven span bridge had been dismantled by the Japanese and brought to Tamarkan from Java in 1942.

Both bridges wee subjected to numerous attacks by Allied aircraft during the period December 1944 to June 1945. One span of the steel bridge was destroyed in a raid mid February 1945.
Two more spans were dropped during raids between April and June 1945.

Tamarkan POW camp was located adjacent to both the bridges and a nearby Japanese anti-aircraft battery. It also suffered during these air raids, the worst being on 29 November 1944. During this attack on the Ack Ack battery, three bombs over carried and demolished the top ends of POW huts 1 and 2, burying a number of the occupants.

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