As the battle of WWII fiercely continued into 1942, an empowered Japanese Army swept through the South Pacific towards the Australian mainland. Sensing an immediate threat of invasion, civilian planters were enlisted and joined commissioned soldiers to form highly-trained espionage teams known as Spyforce.
This 14DVD-series starring Jack Thompson gives a historic insight into the war in the islands.
While in Brisbane, MORGAN EQUIPMENT asked me whether I would be interested to return to Bougainville Island. Would I ever! They had problems with their incumbent financial controller and company secretary and wanted me to "clean up" the place and introduce some tight financial and administrative procedures while he was on leave.
I flew back to Bougainville just before Christmas - and Shirley joined me shortly afterwards - for the first time since 1974 and it was almost like coming home! I revisited all the old places, Kieta, Arovo Island, Camp 6, and Loloho Beach, however, time did not permit to see Panguna and the minesite again.
Click on image
At the end of the assignment, they offered me the financial controller's job but I didn't want to steal another man's job while he was on leave and so I declined. Another opportunity lost?
Click here for more photos.
Did you spend some time on the Bougainville Copper Project in the sixties and seventies? If you did, we want to hear from you! There aren't many of us left and it would be good to hear from those who lived with us in the camps or in Arawa or Kieta and shared with us the experience.
Wouldn't it be great to revisit Bougainville, drive up to Panguna or swim at Loloho Beach? The Bougainville Copper Project shaped our lives as many of us continued in overseas projects. Others returned to suburbia and ordinary jobs but they, too, were forever changed by the experience.
Where are they all today? Many are settled back in Australia while others stayed on in New Guinea and some are still on the move. When were you on Bougainville? Who did you work for and what did you do? Have you photographs or memories to share which we could publish on this blog?
My email address is
I look forward to receiving your email!
Peter Goerman
ex-auditor for Bechtel Corporation
during the construction phase of the mine
(By the way, do you remember the rumours about the stuff they put in our tea in the camp, to keep our minds off it...? Well, 40 years later, I think mine's beginning to work.)
Peter Elias passed away last Thursday, June 27th, 2013. He was 72 years young. Pete was principal at Arawa High School in the early 70s before leaving in 1977 for similar stints in Kokopo, Wewak and Mendi. Peter enjoyed his golf, and was instrumental in the establishment of the Arawa Golf Club and the subsequent organisation of junior golf there, affectionately known as "The Welsh Wizard". He was a friend of Ken Graham, also a teacher (then), who became well-known to a lot of BCL employees as the proprietor of "The Kangaroo Club" in Manila. When he and Val went pinis from PNG, they went back to Wales where they ran a beaut pub, The Golden Lion, in Newbridge-on-Wye. Upon return to Australia, they set up home near McLarenvale in South Australia, and Pete worked part-time at the Coriole Winery cellar door, a job he was a natural at. Pete is survived by Val, and their children, Sara and Brett and their families. The family is holding a private service on Friday, July 5th, 2013.
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Or rather, it was!
It was when one's "home" was a 9x9ft donga tastefully decorated with PLAYBOY centrefolds of girls waxed to the point of martyrdom, when one's wordly possessions easily fitted into a 2ft-wide metal locker, and when one's needs for comfort were satisfied by a red plastic chair on the porch.
Life was so simple then; we were so innocent!
Or, at least, some of us were. The old saying that New Guinea attracted three types of men, namely missionaries, moneymakers, and misfits, had to be rewritten for the Bougainville Copper Project to include those running away from their wives, the police, or themselves.
John Dutton died peacefully at home on in Gawler SA aged 91 years. The funeral was held on June 11th in Gawler SA.
John was one of the early pioneers who arrived on Bougainville with his wife Vi in 1971, to a construction camp in Arawa and a half-built power plant at Loloho. John led the Commissioning Team and over the next 2-3 years he became first the plant Superintendent and then Manager Power, leading all the generation and transmission for the mine. He built up a team of experts operating the Loloho plant and at that time kept it at the highest availability of any steam turbine plant in Australia, consistently achieving well over 97%.
John and Vi enjoyed eight years on the island and had the added bonus of family coming to join them in 1974, when his son Geoffrey came to Bougainville with Yvonne and baby Stuart to work at the power station. Geoff and Yvonne subsequently had a daughter and two sons in Arawa Hospital. Geoff left the power station to become Communications Superintendent in Panguna and stayed until 1985 when the family left for Australia.
John retired in 1979 and he and Vi went to live in Gawler South Australia. John started his engineering career in radar design in the 40’s in the UK and went on to be the Commissioning Manager for the 2,000MW Fawley Power Station. He came to Australia in 1968 to the Torrens Island Power Station in SA, before leaving for adventures in Bougainville.
Besides his love of power engineering John loved his music and played the French horn to records regularly, unfortunately leaving the island before the brass band started in the 1980s. In Gawler he enjoyed retirement with Vi until she died in 2007. He regularly enjoyed a port with his colleagues from Torrens Island and he and Vi played together in the Gawler Brass Band as well as enjoying their grandchildren, three of whom lived close by.
John is survived by three children, 11 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren.
It was very sad news indeed to learn that Peter had peacefully passed away in Townsville after suffering from a massive cerebral haemorrhage.
Peter and wife Gwen arrived in Bougainville in 1972 and remained for a period of ten years. Peter was employed by BCL as the Instrument Foreman in the Loloho Power Station.
Peter was a keen scuba diver and specialised in recovering spent artillery shells from sunken WW2 vessels. He was a great “tinkerer” and the light always seemed to be burning in his little workshop under the house. Everyone in the street was fascinated with Pete’s train that he had set up in the front yard.
Sons Troy and Adam were born during this time on Bougainville and Adam has continued his relationship with PNG and still works there.
Peter was a great supporter of the SP Brewing company and we were able to share many a ‘brown bottle’ as he tinkered away.
Post Bougainville, Peter spent time with QAL, OTML and latterly in the sugar industry around Innisfail and Babinda in Far North Queensland where Troy still works.
Peter’s funeral is to be held in Innisfail at 10:30am on Tuesday 18th June 2013 and the cortege will then move to Babinda for the burial ceremony.