In a letter written by Dutch volunteer Lydia Van Rees-Schmerler to Stanley Medicks, head of the Machal Association in the UK, Europe and Scandinavia, she thanked him for sending photos of the Burma Road: “Indeed, I cannot imagine that I was there, under the very nose of the enemy, digging night by night, mostly with our hands. Then finally we met members of the 5th Regiment, greeting us with good food and fresh water at the other end of the road.
We called the Burma Road “Suicide Road,” and insiders know this macabre name which speaks for itself. I even remember that my tummy got upset because I ate too much… the fresh cold water which we had missed so long was like champagne and that was the nicest thing I could think of at that moment,”
Source: American Veterans of Israel Newsletter: 1993