By Ben Cal/Philippine News Agency
MANILA – “There was an atmosphere of chaos and pandemonium. It was hell!”
This was the curt and melancholic description of retired Constabulary Col. Jose V. Agdamag Jr., a Filipino veteran who saw action in the final battle of Bataan on the eve of the surrender of Filipino and American forces in the Second World War 77 years ago.
His book, “150 Days of Hell”, a must-read for the young generation, was written by Col. Agdamag in collaboration with his son, retired Navy Capt. Vicente M. Agdamag.
The older Agdamag described in detail the bravery and heroic deeds of the more than 100,000 Filipino and American soldiers who defended Bataan against the onslaught of the Imperial Japanese Army, which invaded the Philippines on Dec. 8, 1941 triggering World War 2 in the Pacific.
Before invading the Philippines, the Japanese conquered one after the other neighboring Asian countries in their blitzkrieg offensive, and thought the Philippines would fall in a month or less.
But the brave Filipino and American defenders showed their bravery in combat and withstood the Japanese’s wave of attacks and held Bataan for over three months or 122 days before they surrendered due to exhaustion and extreme hunger.
“On 8 April 1942, Day 122 of the invasion, there was chaos in our position. I could see many Filipino and American soldiers in our immediate vicinity. The troops were disorganized and confused. As far as my platoon was concerned, we were still moving and operating as a team,” Agdamag wrote.
But with the bombardment by the Japanese, his platoon retreated to Cabcaban and Mariveles areas in Bataan.
Then the Japanese, particularly the 65the Brigade, 4th Division and Nagano Detachment, “were advancing towards Limay and Lamao area,” he said.
At the pace they were retreating, Agadamag feared they would run out of withdrawal areas as the Japanese pressed their attacks.
From a distance he could see Manila Bay.
“As we retreated, artillery fires were raining over us,” he said, adding that at the same time, the Japanese Air unit dropped bombs on their positions.
“Three months of malnutrition, malaria and intestinal infections, left the soldiers weak and disease-ridden totally incapable of the sustained physical effort necessary for a successful defense,” Agdamag narrated.
The fall of Bataan was not the end of the war as Filipino and American soldiers who escaped continued the fight as guerrillas all over the country until liberation came following the landing Gen. Douglas McArthur on Oct. 20, 1944. (PNA)
