Extract from Corvette magazine January 1990

Bob B. ex Geraldton tells us that whilst taking passage in Wollongong he learned that her Bofors was "rabbited" from the wharf at Singapore before the Japs over ran the area.

Extract from Corvette magazine July 1990

Bern B., then a Sub Lieutenant ASO says:
"About Bob B's item I must rush to the defence of Wollongong's honour. The Bofors was not "rabbited", but was honourably purchased from the Army, complete with a rubber-tyred carriage for twelve bottles of gin, worth 2/6d a bottle, duty free. For another case of gin, we acquired 200 rounds and a spare barrel.
 
We were well satisfied with our part of the deal, when, about a month later, on 29 February 1942, we passed through Sunda Strait on our own in daylight and under considerable attention from Jap dive-bombers, P.O. Burgess, who manned the Bofors, scored a direct hit and the Jap was last seen heading for the drink with smoke pouring out. P.O. Burgess was awarded a DSM for this action.

At the time we acquired the Bofors Wollongong was anchored off Keppel Harbour. We steamed alongside and the Chief Engineer, Peter L. and a team from the Engine Room, including Bill N., set to, to unbolt the gun from its carriage. Before this was completed, air-raid sirens sounded and the team working on the gun headed for the air-raid shelter. The Captain, Lieut. Gordon Keith RANR(S) decided to call them back and we steamed around Keppel Harbour for the duration of the raid. When we returned, we found that the shelter had received a direct hit and some 30 people had been killed."


Extract from Corvette Magazine January 1996

Wollongong honours its namesake corvette

On Saturday, November 25,  1995 a memorial plaque was unveiled on the wind-swept headland overlooking Wollongong's tiny harbour to commemorate the first visit of the ship to its namesake city exactly 54 years ago.

Bernard (Bunny) Barton who was then the ship's anti-submarine sub-lieutenant and lives in Wollongong, gave a moving speech about the ship's wartime history, which spanned half the glove from the Atlantic to the Pacific Islands. Wollongong was the last Australian warship out of Singapore harbour in 1942 and narrowly missed being sunk with HMAS Yarra. Wollongong had been detached to look after a torpedoed tanker only a few hours before Yarra ran into a Japanese cruiser squadron. Wollongong took part in the Sicily landings and in other  operations in the Med and in the Indian Ocean and finished the war with the British Pacific Fleet. 

Bernard recalled the ship's visit to Wollongong with a certain amount of piquancy. The ship was on its way to Sydney from Melbourne and the captain asked the Navy for permission to call at Wollongong. The Navy said yes, but you can stay for only two hours. 

When the crew zig-zagged back on board two hours later, the captain realised he could never get the ship out to sea with the crew tottering all over the place, so he reported to Navy Board that a peculiar local storm had centred on Wollongong and to attempt to said through the narrow entrance to the harbour would be  dangerous manoeuvre. The Navy realised it had been out-manoeuvred and reluctantly gave permission for the ship to leave next morning.

The monument is mounted on a huge rock overlooking the wharf where Wollongong had berthed and is well worth a visit.