page_title: Miri, Malaysia
section_title: Japanese occupation
hierarchical_section_title: Miri, Malaysia / History / Japanese occupation
caption_attribution_description: English: A SECTION OF THE TOWN THAT WAS WRECKED AND BURNED OUT DURING THE ALLIED PRE INVASION BOMBARDMENT OF THE AREA.
context_page_description: Miri is a coastal city in northeastern Sarawak, Malaysia, located near the border of Brunei, on the island of Borneo. The city covers an area of 997.43 square kilometres, located 798 kilometres northeast of Kuching and 329 kilometres southwest of Kota Kinabalu. Miri is the second largest city in Sarawak, with a population of 234,541 as of 2010. The city is also the capital of Miri District of the Miri Division.
  Before Miri was founded, Marudi was the administrative centre of the northern region of Sarawak. Miri was founded in 1910 when the first oil well was drilled by Royal Dutch Shell. The discovery of an oil field in Miri has led to rapid development of Miri town. Miri became the administrative centre of the northern region of Sarawak by 1929. During World War II, the Miri oil fields were destroyed by the Brooke government to sabotage Japanese operations in Southeast Asia but to no avail; Miri town was the first landing point of Japanese troops in Borneo. The subsequent Japanese occupation led Miri to become a target of Allied air raids which caused the destruction of oil refinery facilities in Miri.
context_section_description: The Brooke government had been actively lobbying for the British government to accept Sarawak as one of its protectorates in an event of a war. By 1888, the British finally agreed to grant the protection to Sarawak. The British dispatched several troops to Sarawak to strengthen its defences in the 1930s. By 1938, under the leadership of Rajah Charles Vyner Brooke, airstrips were constructed in Miri, Kuching, Oya, and Mukah in preparation for an imminent war. However, by 1941, British Royal Navy and Royal Air Force had withdrawn from Sarawak and returned to Singapore. Therefore, the British government advocated a "scorched earth policy" for the Brooke government in the event of a Japanese attack. A Denial Scheme was formulated to destroy oil installations in Miri and Lutong. This was because the coastline measuring 30 miles from Lutong to Miri was impossible to defend from Japanese landings due to shortage of manpower. By May 1941, 1 Infantry Company from 2/15 Punjab Regiment, 6-inch Hong Kong-Singapore Royal Artillery Battery, and 1 Platoon of Royal Engineers were stationed at Miri to oversee the destruction of the Miri oil fields. In August 1941, an operation was carried out to reduce Miri oil output by 70%.
  Soon after the news of Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese planes were seen making reconnaissance flights over Miri. The Brooke government decided on a complete destruction of oilfields and airfields in Miri. Shell company officials received orders to carry out the Denial Scheme on 8 December 1941. In the evening on the same day, the task was completed. All producing oil wells were sealed up with vital equipment and machinery dismantled and shipped off to Singapore. Skilled workers and important company papers also went along with the equipment and sent to Singapore. The Punjab Regiment and several officials were sent to guard Kuching. On 16 December 1941, 9 days after the Pearl Harbor bombing, Japanese troops consisting of 10,000 men landed on Tanjung Lobang Beach, Miri without much resistance. However, on 19 December 1941, a Dutch flying boat from Tarakan Island attacked the Japanese destroyer Shinonome (under the command of Hiroshi Sasagawa) off Miri. The ship was sunk along with the entire crew of 228. Another flying boat X-33 also damaged a Japanese transport ship. After the fall of Singapore on 15 January 1942, skilled workers that went into hiding with their equipment were sent back to Miri by the Japanese. They were immediately put to work for Japanese oil supply service company named Nen Ryo Hai Kyu. Much of the Japanese oil drilling and refinery equipment was portable. A total of 0.75 million barrels were produced during the Japanese occupation from 1941 to 1945.
  During the occupation, Miri and Lutong became a periodic subject of Allied air raids and bombings. Food, clothes, and medicine were scarce. Workers of the Japanese oil supply service were used to reconstruct and maintain Lutong Bridge and Lutong airstrip from Allied bombing damage.
caption: Impact from Allied bombardment on the town
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