Rabaul, New Britain. c. 1942. Three of the six Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) nurses, who ...

Rabaul, New Britain. c. 1942. Three of the six Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) nurses, who were part of Lark Force, enjoying a tea break outside. Note the hut in the background was possibly their living quarters. The three nurses are, left to right: Captain (Capt) Kathleen (Kay) Isabel Alice Parker; Lieutenant (Lt) Daisy (Tootie) Keast; and Lt Marjory J. (Jean) Anderson. These nurses had been sent to Rabaul in April 1941 and were at the Camp Hospital when the Japanese invaded in January 1942. The hospital had been evacuated to the Catholic Mission at Vunapope just prior to the invasion and the nurses, under Capt Parker's leadership, were interned there where they remained, under appalling conditions, until July 1942. The six AANS became part of a group of women, consisting of seven civilian nurses from the Rabaul Government Hospital, four Methodist missionary nurses and a civilian housewife. On 5 July 1942 this group were transferred on the Naruto Maru to Yokohama, Japan. Conditions as prisoners of war in Japan grew worse and in July 1944 they were moved from Yokohama to Totsuka where they remained until the war ended but were kept in ignorance. Their release came after flagging down an American jeep. Capt Parker and Lt Anderson were both awarded Red Cross awards for their "outstanding devotion to duty and disregard of personal danger".