Berhala Island

Tham Kung Temple I Sam Sing Kung Chinese Temple I Puu Jih Shih Buddhist Temple I The Australia Memorial I Agnes Keith's House I Masjid Jamek I St Michael's & All Angels Church I Berhala Island I Japanese Cemetery I The Central Market

Situated in Sandakan Bay, this beautiful forested island has striking, prominent cliffs at its northern end and also had a small leper settlement colony. During WW2, Berhala became the camps for civilian internees and POWs. A story was told of an escape, when eight prisoners being taken to the mainland made their break at Berhala via the leper colony. They swam to the sheer walls of the Berhala cliffs and with help from natives, escaped to freedom. Each year, some families of the Australian POWs make their pilgrimage to this seemingly peaceful island to retrace that dramatic journey.