By CASEY NEILL
Obituary
Peter Chandler
Born: 5 February 1925
Died: 20 August 2012
UPWEY war veteran Peter Chandler was last week laid to rest.
The 87-year-old died on 20 August, leaving behind wife Wilma, sons Roger, Grant and Adrian, grandchildren Aaron, Melissa, Jesse and Lili, and great-grandchild Rose.
Mr Chandler’s family and friends celebrated the able seaman’s life with a service at Le Pine in Ferntree Gully on 24 August.
He was a former Upwey Belgrave RSL Sub-branch president and a member and former president of more than a dozen other hills sporting and community groups.
At the 28 August Yarra Ranges Council meeting Streeton Ward councillor Noel Cliff said Mr Chandler was “a man who was involved in pretty much everything in the community”.
“He will be missed,” he said.
Mr Chandler served with the Royal Australian Navy during World War II.
He was on escort duty, mine-sweeping and anti-submarine duty on HMAS Castlemaine in the Red Sea in July 1943 when he spotted nine small black objects on the horizon.
On closer inspection he discovered the objects were lifeboats, each with 12 to 16 Allied soldiers on board.
“The heat of the tropical sun had taken its toll and they were all lying down in the hull of the boats,” he said.
“Our captain decided to sound off our siren to establish if there was any life among them.
“The only response we received was about four or five hands raised.”
There were active Japanese submarines in the waters so the Castlemaine could not risk stopping.
“We had to proceed on, not at all able to transfer food or water to any possible survivors,” Mr Chandler said.
“There was not a dry eye on our ship as we proceeded on.”
This tragic tale inspired a sculpture to condemn the futile deaths that haunted him.
In December 2008 the Mail reported that renowned Tecoma artist Neil McLeod would immortalise Mr Chandler with help from Lilydale sculptor Gordon Huang.
The result was a sculpture of the veteran in a boat surrounded by white crosses.
“You get plenty of photos done, but there’s no way known in my lifetime I expected a sculpture to be done of me,” Mr Chandler said.
