Battlefield Site Where a Japanese Colonel Was Killed

Battlefield Site Where a Japanese Colonel Was Killed

The battlefield site where a Japanese colonel was killed is located in the Likou River section at the border between Xinwei Natural Village of Shangdong Village in Qishi Town and Dadun Market. GPS coordinates: 23°04'13.0"N, 114°03'39.8"E, elevation 9 meters.

On February 26, 1945, the No. 7 military aircraft of the Japanese 55th Air Division, flying from Phnom Penh, Cambodia to Japan, made an emergency landing around 8:00 PM that evening near Tonghu Shanweitou by the Qiaotou area of Dongguan due to mechanical failure. There were 11 Japanese soldiers on board. That night, three of them walked to the Japanese garrison in Zhangmutou to seek help, while the remaining eight hijacked a small fishing boat the next morning along the Shima River of the Tonghu Lake, intending to escape through Qiaotou and Qishi to the Dongjiang River and then to their stronghold in Shilong. When the boat reached Jiantangkou, they hijacked a slightly larger transport vessel to continue fleeing. After receiving the report, the Dongjiang Column dispatched over ten members from the Zhang Bao Squad and Huang Qiu Squad to pursue along the river. The Japanese fought back continuously using machine guns. As the boat entered a stream near Dadun Market in Shangdong Village of Qishi, over 80 local villagers including Pan Chenggui and Yao Xuxiang from Qinghu and Shangdong joined the battle voluntarily, armed with rifles, shotguns, and sticks. The fierce battle lasted until noon, when the Dongguan military and civilians finally annihilated all the Japanese on the boat.

In this battle, eight Japanese soldiers were killed, including Army Colonel Yasuda Toshio. Two machine guns, two rifles, three long swords, communication equipment, and a batch of important documents were captured. Japanese air force commanders considered this a rare loss since the launch of military operations in South China. During this battle, Huang Qiu, the squad leader of the Second Detachment of the Dongjiang Column, sacrificed his life.

In those days, the upstream section of the Likou River in Dadun Market was relatively narrow, while the downstream section was curved and wider, known as the “Crescent Moon.” Today, rural roads have been built along both banks, and the curved stream and the Likou area have been filled in.

Shangdong Village: Shangdong Village is located in the northeastern part of Qishi Town, Dongguan City, covering an area of 4.8 square kilometers. It currently has a permanent population of 2,573 people, 698 households, and 11 natural villages under its jurisdiction. There are 28 enterprises in the village, employing over 2,500 people, mainly producing electronics, garments, leather goods, printing, plastic products, wooden products, hardware, chemicals, and more.

Shangdong Village genuinely takes the fundamental interests of the people as its starting point, vigorously improving the village’s appearance and focusing on solving the problem of difficult access for villagers. Major lanes within the village have undergone hard-surfacing renovations. At the same time, the village is committed to improving the living standards of its residents and has vigorously promoted... More details about Shangdong Village ++