On 1 March Batavia was being evacuated with truck convoys and trains headed for Tjilatjap where all British warships were ordered to assist in evacuation. Arriving there in the afternoon "Bendigo" then broadcast a message from Commodore Collins, commanding British naval forces, advising that Japanese forces were to the south and ships with sufficient fuel should avoid Tjilatjap and head directly for Fremantle or across the Indian Ocean to Colombo. "Bendigo" with eighty-nine passengers aboard sailed for Fremantle shortly before midnight in advance of the remainder of the group which, excepting "Burnie" now with Collins aboard, had not yet arrived.