Durban - Polish publishers are looking for Durban family members of World War II hero Lieutenant Basil Harvey “Bunny” Austin.
The Independent on Saturday received an e-mail this week from Hubert Kuberski in Warsaw who said publishers want to translate Austin’s 1963 book Urszula, relating to his war experiences, into Polish.
“I’m trying to track down the family of ‘Bunny’ Austin.
“He was with the 31 Squadron SAAF and was part of the crew led by Jacobus Lodewickus van Eyssen who were shot down in the early hours of August 16, 1944, while attempting to resupply the Warsaw Uprising.”
He added that post-war, Austin lived and worked in Pretoria and Pietersburg, but in 1974 moved with his wife (Susan Naude) to Durban to live with their daughter and her family.
“Austin passed away in 1977, but according to Kuberski, there was a grandchild. A Polish publisher is very keen to do a Polish language edition of Austin’s original 1963 book, but has to track down who owns the rights. The original publisher does not know, so it is assumed that a family member owns them,” said Kuberski.
If anyone has information, e-mail us at [email protected] or contact Hubert Kuberski on [email protected]