Relation with Lake (class): Lake Area Inland Cemetery (LAI)  
Total nr. of casualties buried here (TC): 2 end WW2, today: 2. 
Lake casualties, initially, end WW2 (LC-I): 0
Unknown today: 0
of which unknown from Lake (LC-U): 0
of which unknown from North Sea (NS-U): 0
Initial burial site in WW2: yes.
Post war burial site for collection and reburial from other sites: no
Cemetery with Lake casualties today: no.


             
HIESLUM-PARREGA PROTESTANT CHURCHYARD

Hieslum is a hamlet where 50 people live. Here rest two air gunners of Lancaster ED589, RAF 9 Sqn. Shot down by a German nightfighter in the night of 13/14 May 1943. The tail section crashed here with the two shattered remains inside of Sgt. James Buntin and Sgt. John C. Owen. They were buried on this small, quiet and peacefull cemetery. The main section of the aircraft fell further away, about 2km to the Northwest and drove deep into a very soft meadow. The bomb load exploded with devastating force, creating a large pond with water. Nothing was left of these brave men. Officially the five are MIA, listed on the Wall at Runnymede.

    

Dutch name cemetery: Kerkhof Hervormde kerk Hieslum 
CWGC name: Wonseradeel (Hieslum) Protestant Churchyard
Address (usable for car navigation):
Sierdsmaweg or Tempelreed, Postal code 8762, Hieslum.

For reaction or comments; send us an email,
see address and info at CONTACT.
Please use as subject title: 'Hieslum'.








In 1995 the people extended Sgt. Buntin's and Owen's headstone with a horizontal stone plaque in front, with the names of the five lost in the explosion to commemorate them. A civilian grave marker in stead of the standard CWGC-stèle is rare, but can also be found on other locations around the lake. 













Sgt. James Buntin, grave 1
Sgt. John C. Owen, grave 2

The C.E. as Owen's initials on the stone is what they found on him after the crash. However,
these are not his initials. 'C.E' stands for 'Church of England' and comes from his ID-bracelet.


Commemorated (not buried):

Sgt. George H. Saxton  
Sgt. Douglas C. Ferris
Sgt. Wallace R. MacDonald (Canada)
Sgt. Roger M. Morris
Sgt. John Reddish

























 © ZZairwar (Zuyder Sea Air War)