People in Australia’s Northern Territory capital of Darwin are gathering to remember the first time Australian soil came under attack during World War II.
On 19 February 1942, 242 Japanese aircraft attacked the city.
Nearly 250 people were killed and between 300 and 400 people were injured.
“The anniversary is a day to reflect on our past and pay tribute to those servicemen and women and civilians who lost their lives while courageously defending our country,” Northern Territory Chief Minister Natasha Fyles said.
Bombs flattened much of the city, including its bustling Chinatown and Darwin Post Office.
The post-master, his family and six telegraphists were amongst those killed, affecting communication about the event to the rest of Australia.
In Darwin Harbour, bombs sunk both the Neptuna and the USS Peary, adding more than 100 deaths to the toll.
Aircraft continued to raid the city for the next 18 months, in the hopes of stopping Allied forces from using the city’s port for operations to Timor and Indonesia.
As part of Sunday’s commemorations, two F-34A Lightning II aircraft will fly over Darwin Esplanade.
The HMAS Maryborough will also accompany soldiers and the Royal Australian Artillery in a re-enactment.
“In commemorating this day we are passing the story onto the next generation and keeping memory alive,” Fyles said.
Federal opposition leader Peter Dutton said the bombing of Darwin was an event which “changed our nation like no other” only two months after the devastation of Pearl Harbour rocked the United States.
He said Sunday was an occasion to remember those who died.
“Their sacrifice is a legacy of lessons for Australians today and tomorrow: of our vulnerability as a nation, regardless of the times; of our need for vigilance, however improbable the threat; and of the enduring value of our northern defences against authoritarianism, whatever its form.”
