Minefields

Heroes Remember

Minefields

Transcript

I got into one of my light tanks to lead the squadron out and there was a gate there. I opened it and started out in my light tank. Sherman following it detonated a land mine. Blew the bottom pretty well out of it. Sherman killed the driver and the bow gunner and I thought afterwards why didn't it go off when I went over it. If it had of, all of us would have been killed. I got another light tank and continued on down to where we're getting pretty close to our kick off point and I got out of my light tank again and into my Sherman. The light tank moved off to one side and a shell came and hit it and luckily it just knocked the track off. I got another light tank in front of me and we continued on down the road. We got to the, to the river and suddenly the, the light tank hit a mine and I looked and again I was surrounded by mines. The both sides were literally covered with mines. It was a big mine field. I reported this back to my squadron commander and he came up to have a look and he decided that he would call for the troops that we had the engineering troops with us and they would clear these mines on the side and let the, the squadron go through. I was sitting there watching all these men in the mine field and suddenly the whole mine field went up and there were 26 troopers blown in the air. 26 and I was literally sitting on my tank dodging parts. It was the most gory thing that I'd ever seen happen. When it was over, we got 26 blankets put out on the ground and tried to match the men and I can remember the Sergeant walking up and down with a leg he says, "Who's missing a leg? Who's missing a leg?" and I think one soldier is buried with three legs. While this was going on we came under fire from a German anti tank gun and as I was out in the open I, they seemed to be firing at me. I was on wireless watch. My driver wasn't in the tank. He was out helping with the bodies. So I had to move the tank and I had not driven the tank for oh well over a year maybe a couple of years and I was surprised how fast I could climb down, start the tank up like nothing you know and get it out of there. That night we had stayed in a barn and in the middle of night I was awakened by this trooper walking around saying they're all dead, they're all dead. He was again completely out of it. He was the driver of the, the vehicle that the scout troop had used and he had managed to survive because he wasn't there when they went up. He says they're all dead, they're all dead. I grabbed my Corporal and told him to take him back to the MO and, and that was the last I saw of him.

Description

Still in Italy, an attempt to clear a minefield results in bloodshed and death for several of Mr. Murray's troops.

Robert Murray

Robert Murray was born in Toronto, Ontario on February 8, 1918. His father was Inspector of Detectives of the Toronto police force. Mr. Murray had six brothers and sisters. He was the second youngest.

Meta Data