ATIS INTERROGATION REPORT NO. 4446
FIELD REPORT (ADVATIS FWD - 0023) 29 November 1950
| PW NAME: | KIM, Yu Chol (金裕喆) (김유철) |
| PW NO: | None |
| RANK: | Jr Lt (少尉) |
| AGE: | 21 |
| DUTY: | None |
| UNIT: | Not Assigned |
| EDUCATION: | Middle School - 4 yr |
| OCCUPATION: | Office clerk |
| PLACE OF CAPTURE: | PYONGYANG |
| DATE OF CAPTURE: | 20 Oct 50 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH: | HAM NAMDO PUNGSAN GUN NUNG WI MYON YAK SUR LI (咸南道 豊山郡 能耳面 藥水里) |
| HOME ADDRESS: | SONGJIN SHI SAN POLI #46 (咸北道 城津市 双浦里) |
| INTERROGATOR: | SFC FUKUSHIMA (ATIS) |
PW was cooperative although information is limited. Information considered fairly reliable.
26 Aug 50: Conscripted and sent to PYONGYANG Officers Training School for about one month.
10 Oct 50: Completed school and was commissioned a Jr Lt.
20 Oct 50: PW received orders to report to HUNGHAM to join a unit there. While in. the process of leaving. PYONGYANG PW and four others were captured by the UN forces.
The town of HO LYUNG (和龍) is located on a small gradual hill and is surrounded by rolling hills (200 M - 300 M) high on the east, west and southern sides of town. The northern section of town is a flat land and this is where majority of the farming is carried out. The soil is black and very suitable for cultivation. The main product is rice although kaoliang and corn are grown in abundance.
The HE LUNG River (海蘭江) is located about 500 N West of HO LYUNG (和龍) and it flows from South to North. This river measures about 150-200 m in width in the vicinity of the town and its about 2 m in depth. Its current is very swift. The banks are natural and gradual. The river bed is sandy. The river fluctuates about 1 m during heavy rainstorms. It freezes about 1 m deep in the early part of Nov and starts melting in the middle of Apr.
Snow starts falling from early part of Oct to mid-Mar. It falls to an average depth of 1 m. The ground freezes from early Oct to mid-Mar, an average depth of 80 cm.
The rainy season is from Jun to Jul. Average of 15 cm. The river usually rises and covers the whole river bed but not enough to overflow.
| Temperature | Low Month | High Month |
| Winter - | -40℃ Jan | -10℃ Mar |
| Summer - | 30℃ Jun | 40℃ May |
Only government offices and public offices had telephones. No individual homes had telephones. All calls were believed to be made through the central telephone exchange located in the town post office.
A single track RR line ran N to YONGJON (龍井). This town is the end of this RR line and traffic is very limited. It is believed that only once a day a passenger train and freight trains arrive and depart from here. All of the food supplies are transported by. means of the RR.
All of the roads within the city limits as well as outskirts of town are dirt roads about 6 m wide. During the rainy season and the winter traveling is very difficult. Very few vehicles are located here.
Population is estimated to be about 25,000. 80% of the population was made up of Korean and the other 20% were made up of Chinese. Majority of the population are farmers. Business is usually carried cut by Chinese. The education standards compared to the Chinese are considered good due to the feat that all Koreans are required to go to primary school whereas Chinese do not have any such compulsory education.
Usually 30% of those who finish primary school attend middle school, however those attending colleges and/or universities are very few. There are no colleges or universities so all who wish to attend these schools usually YENCHI (延吉).
The sanitary conditions are very poor in HO LYUNG. PW states that about every other year during May this town has a Cholera and/or small-pox epidemic. Usually during the epidemic an inoculation program is put into effect. It is done by the government and all persons are given shots without charge.
There is one government operated hospital that could accommodate about 100 patients. Although, it was operated by the government this hospital was very expensive so many people could not afford it and the death rate was very heavy in this town.
PW while residing at HO LYUNG during the above mentioned period observed a wooden bridge daily.
This bridge was approx 200 m long and 6 m wide. It was located about 200 m east of the HO LYUNG RR sta. It spanned the HE LUNG River making it an important bridge, for the population of. HO LYUNG due to the fact that this bridge must be used to go to the RR station from HO LYUNG town.
It was a wooden constructed bridge with about six concrete piers supporting it. The concrete piers are about 7 m above the water level and are about 2 m wide and 6 m long. PW estimated that this bridge’s capacity is about 50 tons.
The river bed in the vicinity of the bridge is sandy and very shallow.
For the Commanding Officer:
GERARD
