DIARY OF MEDICAL DETACHMENT – STATION #167

Beginning 4 June 1943

JUNE 1943

4 June 1943 – The medical detachment of the 381st BG, including HQ, 532nd Squadron, 533rd Squadron, 534th Squadron and 535th Squadron, arrived by train at AAF Station 167, after landing in the U.K. at a more northern post in Scotland, Firth of Clyde.

Station sick quarters had earlier been occupied by the R.A.F. 90 Squadron, and taken over by the 330th Service Squadron, 100th Service Group and HQ Squadron, HQ Squadron 318th Service Group, operated by the combined medical detachments of the above mentioned groups. The 381st Group Surgeon, Major Garfield P. Schnabel, who accompanied the flight echelon has not yet arrived at this station. Patients from the advance party were being cared for at the station sick quarters and several were admitted from the new arrivals at the station.

The physical layout is such that three Nissen huts with connecting hallways house a war containing 14 cots for enlisted men, and a smaller ward of three cots for officers. Only cases of minor illness or injury  will be cared for in quarters if the duration of confinement is thought not to require longer than seven to ten days.

Roster of medical personnel as of this date.

Headquarters:

• Cpl Maurice K. Lemasters
• Pfc Michael W. Spack
• Pfc Stanley A. Johnson

532nd BS:

• Cpl Wallace V. Leblanc
• Cpl Frank Horoviak
• Pfc William Manway
• Pfc Robert Ball
• Pfc Eugene Kelly
• Pfc Durrell W. Wayland
• Pvt Francis Knight
• Pvt Raymond Lashure

533rd BS:

• Sgt William O. Stone
• Cpl Joseph Babich
• Cpl William Piech
• Pfc Marshall Miller
• Pfc Malcolm F. Robertson
• Pfc Charles Denning
• Pfc  William Perrels
• Pfc Arlin T. Atkinson

534th BS:

• Sgt Homer B. Stamp
• Cpl Olaf C. Ostervett
• Cpl August Birdsal
• Pfc Jack Austin
• Pfc William Greene
• Pfc John A. Raab
• Pvt Anthony J. Coral

535th BS:

• Sgt Howard  W.  Bown
• Cpl William H. Bassett
• Cpl George Monch
• Pfc Maynard  O. Payne
• Pfc Edward Poynor
• Pfc Harvey King
• Pfc Charles Timonere
• Pfc James   (quaintance?????

630th Service Squadron:

• Sgt Henry H. Thomas
• Cpl Milton Smith
• Cpl Ranzy Leree
• Cpl Carroll F. Campbell
• Pfc Joseph Danning
• Pfc  Emil  (Pukachezski????????)
• Pvt Forrest Stansbury

312th Service Group HQ:

• Sgt Donald Lockwood
• Cpl Milton Patterson
• T/5 Clarence Harman
• Pfc Arthur Reder
• Pfc Edward Standel
• Pfc William Sharitz
• Pvt Brian Marlovich
• Pvt Martin Prendergast
• Pvt Joe Coleman

OFFICERS

Medical

• 532nd BS – 1st Lt Bernard E. Cohler
• 533rd  BS – Capt Louis G. Ralston
• 534th BS – Capt Milton H. Bland
• 535th BS – Capt Cornelius J. Dwyer
• 312th Serv Gp – 1st Lt W. G. Fessler

Dental

• HQ 381st BG – Capt Leslie F. Jones
• 312th Serv Gp – Capt Lee Scholnik

5 June – Major Hall, Surgeon 4th Bombardment Wing visited the station and outlined and discussed briefly the Medical Set-up and reports required in this Theater of Operations.

The detachment of the 12th Evacuation Hospital, Braintree, Essex Co., was visited in the afternoon for the purpose of learning the correct procedure of admitting patients requiring evacuation from base sick quarters.

6 June – Major Schnabel arrived this P.M. and took up the duties of Station Surgeon.

8 June – The greater portion of the flight echelon led by Lt Col Nazarro arrived this P.M.. It was a beautiful and welcome sight to see the formation.

10 June – Routine medical duties are proceeding smoothly, organization of the detachment has been satisfactory. Sick call has been set up and held daily in the following sites, in addition to the station sick quarters site (AAF 14); WAAF Site (AAF 12). First aid stations have been set up in the Picket Hut in each site and are to be manned during air raid alerts.

19 June – A case of scarlet fever of moderate severity was discovered in the ward containing other patients, who were immediately quarantined or isolated for seven days. New admissions were cared for in the auxiliary spaces of the decontamination center.

22 June – The first raid of the group was staged early this A.M., the target Antwerp, Belgium. Two aircraft with crews were missing in action and two aircraft which were severely disabled crash landed in England. Six members of Lt Martin Shenk’s crew were wounded in action and all were hospitalized at 12th Evacuation Hospital, Botesdale, Suffolk Co. One man, Sgt Kinley Lindsay, RWG 533rd BS, was admitted to our own sick quarters. Apparently only one man of the six hospitalized, received severe injuries. (Note) He died several days later of gas gangrene.

Sgt Arnold B. Lorick, TG, 533rd BS, was killed in action (30 cal through his neck) and his remains were returned to this station and will be forwarded to Brookwood Cemetery for interment.

T/Sgt Julius Cosby, TG, 535th BS, was returned in a state of acute emotional shock and admitted to sick quarters – sedative therapy instituted.

KEY

MIA 532nd BS M/42-30016

MIA 533rd BS G/42-30021

COMPLETE LIST OF MEN WOUNDED IN ACTION:

• Cosby, Julius S/Sgt 535th TG
• Lindsay, Kinley Sgt 533rd WG
• Sinclair, John T/Sgt 533rd ROG
• Labuda, Mitchell S/Sgt 533rd ETTG
• Barclay, George S/Sgt 533rd ROG
• Sloan, James S/Sgt 533rd WG
• Brinton, Charles S/Sgt 533rd WG
• Williams, George 2nd Lt 533rd Bombardier

23 June – During the process of loading 300lb bombs on B-17 of 533rd BS, a severe explosion occurred followed about 15-30 seconds later by another bomb explosion. The accident occurred about 11.08 hrs at dispersal #13.This was followed by a fire of severe proportion. Some 22 enlisted men, and one officer in a neighboring plane, were killed instantly, and one aged man, a British civilian construction worker, cycling past, was fatally wounded, dying a few minutes after arriving at station sick quarters.

One EM, Pfc Glenn W. Burkland, received a fractured leg, comminuted and compounded, was evacuated to SQ, where first aid was rendered and a Thomas leg splint was applied before evacuation to 12th Evacuation Hospital, Braintree. F/O Nutt and Lt Alexander, standing by the tail of an adjacent plane were blown to the ground and several yards from the plane, received blast injury, mild, to chest and sprained left ankle respectively, and were admitted to SQ. Also three other British civilians received minor abrasions.

A careful survey of the area involved revealed no living injured other than those listed above, and three others who received minor cuts and abrasions, who were cared for at SQ and returned to duty. As soon as the area was declared safe by the Ordnance Department, the work of removing and identifying the bodies and remains of bodies proceeded. This required many hours, and covered a large area surrounding the scene of the blast. Ten soldiers known to have been at the scene of the explosion have been unidentified and are accounted for. Thirteen bodies or portions of bodies of soldiers have positively, but the mutilation and charring of the remains made the task extremely difficult.

COMPLETE LIST OF 533rd MEN KILLED BY EXPLOSION

Early in the afternoon our planes went off on their second mission over occupied France. Due to the fact that our planes did not meet the rest of the group at the rendezvous point, they returned without reaching their target. There were no casualties, or deaths, with the exception  of three men, all 534th BS S/Sgts, suffered first degree frost bites, hands: Robin Bassinger, Paul Gregory and Guy Phillips.

24 June – The remains of the victims were transported by two ambulances to Brookwood Cemetery, Surrey Co., for interment.

WAAF Site (#12) Sick Quarter occupied and scarlet fever contacts were removed to same.

25 June – Our third raid of the group took place today, with the following casualties. Destination: Hamburg.

MIA: 533rd BS E/42-30027

WIA:

• Everett, Arthur 535th BS S/Sgt ETTG
• Prodrosky, John 534th BS S/Sgt WG
• ???cle, Lloyd 534th BS S/Sgt RO

KIA:

• Tieman, Ivan 534th BS S/Sgt BTG

S/Sgt Everett was on a plane that landed on a base near, Ely, Cambridge, and was removed to hospital at RAF Ely. The other two, received 2nd degree frost bite and have been grounded.

S/Sgt Charles Brinton, WIA three days ago, succumbed to gas infection which developed subsequently.

27 June – The fourth raid of the group took place today, destination: Paris, France. Due to heavy overcast, the planes were unable to see their target; therefore, they returned without dropping their bombs.

No men were MIA or KIA, but S/Sgt Shirley Coucher, 533rd ETTG was frostbitten and taken to sick quarters.

Quarantine was lifted on scarlet fever contacts.

28 June – The fifth mission was staged today, to St Nazaire, France. There were no MIA or KIA. But three men were WIA: Capt Landon Hendricks 533rd pilot; S/Sgt John Kapuska, 533rd ETTG; Sgt Daniel Vine, 534th  TG.

Two medical officers, Capts Bland and Ralston, were flown to RAF aerodrome at Portreath, Cornwall, to take care of any wounded, as gas carried on the mission would not permit return to the home base. Fortunately, only very minor injuries were sustained and no aircraft were lost.

29 June – Sgt Robert H. Anderson, of the 7th Station Complement Squadron was accidentally and fatally shot with a Thompson sub-machine gun in the barracks this afternoon (shot by friend Sgt Miller).

The sixth raid of the group this PM, to Tricqueville, France, resulted in no casualties.

30 June – Group has been requesting for an additional officers’ ward in the sick quarters. This will then, when completed, give them additional space which is sorely needed.