Major John Tulloch, a retired army officer, returned to the muddy track in Borneo where thousands of World War Two PoWs marched to their deaths, experiencing a shocking revelation when he examined photographs he had taken.
Upon reviewing his images, Major Tulloch discovered what seemed to be hunched, skeletal ghostly figures walking in alignment with the path followed seven decades earlier.
This eerie image stirs powerful memories of the tragic ‘death march’ undertaken by Allied prisoners of war.
In the dreadful Sandakan Death Marches of 1945, around 2,400 World War II PoWs lost their lives to prevent their liberation as Japan faced retreat.
Brutal Japanese captors compelled them to walk 160 miles for a month, barefoot and severely malnourished, under the sweltering sun.
In 2010, Maj Tulloch captured the photograph from a 4×4 vehicle while traversing the ‘death march’ route.
The incredible optical illusion is believed to have been caused by the reflection of a patterned towel situated on the vehicle’s dashboard during the photo’s capture.
Major Tulloch recounted that he took the photograph in 2010 while scouting the route in preparation for a
March of Remembrance and the unveiling of a memorial dedicated to the 400 Royal Artillery members who perished.
Those who collapsed from exhaustion were often left to die or were executed, either shot, bayoneted, or beheaded.
The conditions were so horrific that some servicemen reportedly turned to cannibalism to survive.
Only six men managed to survive the three marches from Sandakan to Ranau, and that was due to their escape.
This event stands as the most significant atrocity against Australian troops.
At 66, Major Tulloch stated: ‘As we drove along the same track used during the death march, I snapped approximately 200 digital photographs.’
‘When I later reviewed the pictures on a computer, I initially overlooked it.’ ‘Upon reviewing them again, I suddenly thought, “what the hell…?”
‘Re-examining the photo sent a chill down my spine. I noticed the shapes of 17 or 18 ghostly figures emerging from the jungle, walking down the path toward Ranau, visible in the distance.’
‘It took me several moments to comprehend how it had happened, but it was simply too bizarre to describe.’ ‘I showed it to many people, and they responded with astonishment; some even refused to look because it was so haunting.’
‘While my guide was driving, he placed a patterned towel on the dashboard, which reflected through the windscreen. I have termed it reflections of a death march.’
Currently, Maj Tulloch serves as an instructor for jungle warfare with the Royal Artillery.
by Mike Hansom
