CASUALTY REPORTS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 186, 26 April 1918, Page 7

CASUALTY REPORTS

—-4 ', : THE PROCEDURE STATED . HOW THE NEWS COMES THROUGH < As there is evidently misapprehension among somo sections of the public as to toe publication of casualties in the newspapers, it is considered desirable to again act out the- system which has now betn ■in force for over twelve months. Tho official casualty lists contain the information submitted by the Imperial ■authorities, and as this goes through' seveTal channels before being 'cabled to tho Baso Records Office here tho lists aro not received until about two or three •weeks alter the dufe of the casualty. In addition to tins information tne .DefenceMinister has arranged Unit wherovor possible u cabled liotilication shall bo received as. soon as a wouuued soldier U'eaciies u hospital in JJiigm'jid or ;:runce, villi jjartiuuiars oi thu nature of wo wounus. Xjiis inlorinaubn is usuuuy. received within a tew days of. thu soldier's arrival in hospital, and in addition to being immediately Jtotined to tne next-ol'-Mn appears in me hospital and progress repons, which aro issued to tho l'ress twice daily when ncces&ury with tlio ea/iualty lists by i3aso' : li,teords. During the present offensive fully 75 per tent, oi the soldiers admitted to liwpi-, tals in ffranco and the United lungdum .Iwve been lirst reported under the hospital Teports, and this accounts for a soluitr's name appearing twice—first on n hospital list and later on Ihe ofiicial casualty lists, hospital report has been received before tlio ollicial casualty.a soldier can often only lie notified to next-of-kin as "wounded" instead of more de•■tailed information being availablo, 'as as the casu with a. hpspital notification. :'Except in minor cases of ivounds, which often do noc necessitate a soldier being sont to hospital, the. detailed information js nearly always supplied within a few days. The instructions are that notifications must always be classified as: (a) dangerous; (b) serious,, or (c) wounded, which means that all notifications under ■category "C" reed not cause next-of-kin any undue anxiety, as any change in conulition to tho "dangerous" or "serious" list is immediately notified by cablo to Base Kecords, who in turn telegraph this information on receipt to the next-of-kin. Every casualty list as received , is at 'once dealt with and tho notifications sant by urgent telegram to hext-of-lrin, nnd arrangements are in force at Base Eecords under which any casualty cables ■Received before 8 p.m. are always dealt ■with and the next-of-kin telegrams de-' posited with tho G.P.0., before the casualty staff ceases work. i ;•• . " On a recent Sunday during the present bffensivo 1400 casualty reports' were received unexpectedly at Baso Records at 30 a.m.; an emergency.staff ivas collected, and the uoxt-of-kiii "telegrams lodged in tho G.P.O. by 9 p.m.