STORMING OF CALAIS UNDER WAY

Dominion, Volume 38, Issue 2, 27 September 1944, Page 7

STORMING OF CALAIS UNDER WAY

Massive Defences Blitzed LONDON, September 25. Canadian troops this morning began an all-out assault on Calais, aided by one of the greatest concentrations of Allied warplanes in support 'of ground operations yet used in the war. Three hundred R.A.F. bombers dropped nearly 1300 tons of bombs on the port's defences, and then tanks and Canadian infantry got to work. The moment the last bomb exploded flail tanks moved in from the south-west and beat two paths through the minefields. Then came assault troops, using flame-throwing Churchills and oilier armour. The tanks went so quickly that the infantry could hardly keep up with them. When they did eventually reach the outer defences they found dejected Germans sitting about on the ground. They had tried to surrender to the flails, but the. men in the tanks had no time to take prisoners: so the Germans had to wait till the infantry came along. Twg hours after the attack began an officer said it seemed to be going extremely well. The first strongpoint to fall was about four miles south-west of Calais. In their advance our men stormed several of the emplacements the Germans had used for their big cross-channel guns. In spite of the initial success against the outer defences of Calais, the final reduction is expected to take some time, because the town itself is one of the strongest fortresses in Europe, with massive defences and a great amount of artillery.

“The Times” correspondent .outside Calais says that the Germans, in addition to the construction of a formidable antitank ditch and the mining of all approaches to Calais, flooded a wide area west, south-west and south-east of the town, and it is necessary for the Canadians here to use Mae West life-jackets and assault bonis.

About 20,000 civilians remain in Calais, horded in the southern part of the town. They refused to leave because they feared being caught between two fires.