FIRST KIWIS UNDER FIRE?

Evening Star, Issue 25956, 22 November 1946, Page 10

FIRST KIWIS UNDER FIRE?

THIRD ECHELON CLAIMS DISTINCTION Who were the first New Zealand troops to come under fire in the 193945 war? This knotty question was informally debated at some length by a group of Kiwis this week in the club rooms of the 2nd N.Z.E.F. Association. A First Echelon man who was in the desert just after Italy’s entry presented a strong case, and a Second Echelon representative who was in England during the blitz also had a strong claim. But the Third Echelon debater came into the picture, too, when he" recalled an episode while in convoy in the Red Sea in October, 1940. A section of the Third Echelon, left at Deolali, out of Bombay, because of a shortage of shipping, embarked in the French vessel, Felix Rouselle on October 10, 1940. This ship was the only one carrying troops in a convoy of about 30 ships, which were guarded at the outset by an armed merchantman. As the convoy approached the Red Sea and the danger area, H.M.S. Leander and two destroyers took up patrol stations. On the afternoon of October 19, the 300 men, including the first reinforcements to the 26th Battalion, who had sailed from New Zealand . with the original Third Echelon infantrymen in the Orcadtes (sunk after being bombed in the North African invasion in 1943), came under an attack by Italian planes. The convoy was well spread out, and as the Italian bombers were mere specks, their evasive action from the ack-ack fire of the warships being in the Italian tradition, their bombing proved quite innocuous. In the early hours of next morning things warmed up considerably. There was a fireworks show; flashes of guns lit up the horizon, flares streamed into the sky, tracers felt for a target, and searchlights pencilled the water in an effort to pick up survivors from the convoy, it being thought that Italian destroyers that had come into the middle of the ships must have done some damage. .It was a close shave, for had the Italian ships pressed home their attack instead of racing away as soon as the protective British naval screen wept into action havoc would have been created. This .lively episode happened near the Somaliland coast, and the convoy was also shelled by shore batteries. ACCURATE BOMBING. The Felix Rouselle later left the convoy and made for Port Sudan to take on water. On October 23, a tug in the harbour suddenly sounded the air raid alarm on its siren, and the “ wogs ” panicked. There were several warships in port, and action stations were quickly manned. This time the aim of the bombers was good. The Felix Rouselle was the principal target, and she was straddled. Some bombs landed in the sea 50yds from the ship, and there was a scamper as the natives collected the dead fish floating belly up. Two bombs hit the wharf, one killing about 20 Egyptians in a shed, and the other one, close by the vessel,fortunately failed to explode. That night the Felix Rouselle left for Suez. A section of the Third Echelon had come through a baptism of fire without a single casualty. Whether these troops were the first in the division to experience actual battle conditions is open to correction, but they claim to share the honour, unless there is proof produced to the contrary. “ Bofor ” would welcome evidence from First and Second) Echelon troops. ;

Memorial Tablet for Tramway Men. Perpetuating the memory of tramway men in Dunedin who lost their lives in both the 1914-18 and Second World Wars, a memorial tablet placed below the clock at the tramway sheds in Market street is to be officially unveiled on Sunday afternoon. Altogether, nine men made the supreme sacrifice, five of them serving in the latest conflict. A parade of tramway employees will assemble at the Queen’s Gardens at. 2.55 p.m., and will march to the tram sheds, headed by the St. Kilda 'Hand. An address will be given by the Mayor (Mr D. C. Cameron), who will also perform the ceremony of unveiling the tablet, which is fashioned from granite. The chairman of the official party, which will . include the Minister of Defence (Hon. F. Jones). Messrs Stuart P. Cameron (president of the R.S.A.), and E. F. Tibbetts (president of the Second N.Z.E.F. Association), will be' Tramway Inspector J. McTigue. The principal address will be given' by the Rev. 0. T. Baragwanath, who will also offer a prayer. The St. Kilda Band will render ‘ Abide With Me,’ and the ‘ Last Post ’ will be sounded by Mr W. McKay. The general public is invited to attend this ceremony. Second N.Z.E.F. Association Items. Tire association’s two cricket teams fielded in the League competitions began well last Saturday with wins in their respective unofficial matohes. Players are requested to be ready to take the field at the Oval to-morrow at 1.30 p.m. A match has been arranged for next Wednesday afternoon, and players who will be available are asked to notify the secretary. Following the setting up of a Social Committee, the first function to take place soon will be a dance. The committee is to hold a meeting on Tuesday at 8 p.m. Another activity is the table tennis tournament, which is to be commenced on Monday, December 2. Competitors are to be notified of the order of the matches. The lively interest taken by the Otago branch _ of the Second N.Z.E.F. Association in their comrades who are under medical treatment is reflected in the sponsoring of a concert to be held at the Waipiata

Sanatorium on Saturday, December 14. The party will consist of well-Lnown radio performers, and a two-hour programme is to be presented. The concert is to be controlled by Mr George Bezar.