大象传媒

Mine clearing and more

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I was in the 50th Northumbrian Division in the Royal Engineers in 1942. My first action was just before the fall of Tobruk, where I was wounded whilst mine clearing and was taken into Tobruk Hospital and whilst there we were informed that the Germans were advancing and that they were about to encircle the hospital area and that all that could get up and walk, it was every man for himself. I was fit enough to leave the hospital and I made for the main road and the first vehicle I noticed was marked TT51 (Tyneside and Tees) and having whistled him, he stopped and I was reunited with my Unit.
Some time after this we come to the period of El Alamein where our Unit was employed in clearing the mine fields prior to the main infantry attacks. Whilst carrying out this mine clearing a colleague of mine standing next to me tripped an S type mine, which fired out of the ground to a height of about 6 feet and fortunately for me they tilted sideways at their peak, which fortunately meant that the blast went over my head, but unfortunate for my colleague, he took the full blast and was killed instantly. As history portrays we advanced up the coastal area via Tobruk, Banghazi. and Tripoli. We then had a while free of action where I was posted to a radio course, which I passed out and became a Unit Radio Operator, which was obviously better than mine clearing. Our Unit was reorganised and we were incorporated in the landings in Sicily and it would be obvious to us that the experience we gained in the landings there, fitted us well for our next operation, which was the D Day landings in Normandy.
We landed on Day 1 at Arramanche (?), we were with the TT51 Division and went through France, up into Belgium, and just prior to the Arnhem drop, we were involved in the capturing of Nijmegen and then subsequently the capture of Arnhem. From here we then progressed into Germany finishing on VE Day just outside Berlin.
The Royal Engineers Unit (Company) comprised of 250 soldiers at the start of the North African Campaign and of there were only some 80 or 90 of the original left at the German surrender near Berlin.

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