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Corporal Paul Hodgson of A Squadron of the Divisional Cavalry Regiment, gives a short talk about their work overseeing the Repatriation Centre at Otake, Japan.
Otake is one of the main repatriation ports of Japan. Ex-prisoners of war and returning civilians arrive there and need to be processed - this entails a customs search, medical examination, forms filled in and then they are sent by train elsewhere in Japan.
During the war, the centre was a Naval training camp with extensive facilities.
A Squadron's main work is in connection with the repatriation centre, but they do have other duties. He recounts two recent incidents the squadron have had to deal with. The theft of 200 drums of petrol from a port 50 miles down the coast resulted in a 12-hour search each way along the coastline. An suspected outbreak of cholera aboard a repatriation ship resulted in quarantine of the centre and all the vessels lying in harbour. The squadron maintained patrols to make sure nobody broke the quarantine and attempted to swim ashore. On one occasion some detainees attempted to break out of one of the compounds; men from A Squadron fired shots over their heads which scared them back to their billets.
He finishes by sending greetings to his family back home.