The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (NFX125936) Sister Myrle Mary Eileen Moston, Ships Staff Centaur AANS, Second World War

The Last Post Ceremony is presented in the Commemorative area of the Australian War Memorial every day. The ceremony commemorates more than 102,000 Australians who have given their lives in war and other operations and whose names are recorded on the Roll of Honour. At each ceremony the story behind one of the names on the Roll of Honour is told. Hosted by Craig Berelle the story for this day was on (NFX125936) Sister Myrle Mary Eileen Moston, Ships Staff Centaur AANS, Second World War.

NFX125936 Captain Myrle Mary Eileen Moston
KIA 14 May 1943
Photograph: P03730.001

Story delivered 6 June 2013

Today, we remember and pay tribute to Captain Myrle Mary Eileen Moston of the Australian Army Nursing Service.

Born in Trangie, New South Wales, in 1907, Myrle enjoyed growing up in the wide open spaces of the Western Plains. Her parents, Alfred and Elizabeth Moston, ran the local hotel. After a move to Sydney during the Great Depression, Myrle worked as a stenographer before beginning her nursing training. She enlisted in the Australian Army Nursing Service in 1941.

With the outbreak of fighting in New Guinea, the allied army there needed constant resupply as well as medical evacuation for sick and wounded troops. In January 1943 the Centaur, a passenger and cargo ship which had been operating along the Western Australian coast for twenty years, was converted into a hospital ship capable of carrying almost 300 patients. Sister Moston was posted on board.

In early May 1943, the ship set out from Sydney Harbour for its ill-fated second voyage, heading north to Cairns. On board were members of the 2/12th Field Ambulance, 12 nurses from the Australian Army Nursing Service, and 68 seamen from the ship's crew.

At approximately 4.10 am on Friday, May 14 1943, with many of those on board sound asleep in their bunks, Australian Hospital Ship Centaur was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine off the coast of Queensland, despite being ablaze with lights and clearly marked with red crosses.

Sister Ellen Savage, the only survivor among the 12 nurses later wrote:
My cabin mate, Myrle Moston and myself were awakened by two terrific explosions and practically thrown out of bed. Sister Moston and I were so shocked we did not even speak, but I registered mentally that it was a torpedo explosion. We rushed to the porthole, looked out, and saw the ship ablaze.

Still in their pyjamas, they rushed to the deck and jumped overboard together. Myrle was struck by a piece of falling timber and died in the water; she was 35 years old. In three minutes the ship had sunk. Of the 322 crew and staff on board, only 64 survived.

Her name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my left, along with about 40,000 others from the Second World War, and her photograph is displayed today beside the Pool of Reflection.

This is one of the many stories of courage and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Captain Myrle Mary Eileen Moston, and all of those Australians who have given their lives in the service of our nation.