STERN FIGHTING

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21227, 16 October 1943, Page 3

STERN FIGHTING

N.Z. COMBAT UNITS VELLA LAVELLA DRIVE JAPS. SQUEEZED TO COAST IBy Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright. 1 (N.Z.E.F. Official War Correspondent.) (9 a.m.) VELLA LAVELLA. Oct. I.' The first land operation in which men of the Third New Zealand Division in the Pacific have been involved has entered its tenth day with the New Zealanders making substantial progress at times in very stern fighting against Japanese pockets of resistance on the north-west coast of Vella Lavella. One of the two combat teams closing in on either side of the enemy has encountered fierce opposition at a point where the main Japanese concentration appears to be and its advance has been slowed down for the time being. The going is extremely hard in heavy jungle undergrowth and torrential rain, but the New Zealanders are showing a marked aptitude in coping, with the new and difficult conditions. Enemy headquarters are on a stretch of the north-west coast between Timbala Bay and Marquana Bay. Their strength, though still indeterminate, may be from 500 to 600 and the measure of their resistance suggests that they have plenty of rations, ammunition and light infantry weapons. Well dug in in defensive positions, the Japanese are fighting with a fierceness born of desperation. Landings at Two Points

The operations began on Tuesday, September 21, when combat teams from the Fourteenth Brigade landed at two widely separated points in the northern sector of the island. Their objective was to squeeze the enemy into a small coastal strip where they could be eliminated under steady pressure and to isolate and destroy pockets overtaken in the advance. Progress was slow. With no roads and only a few rough tracks in the immediate vicinity of coconut plantations, the troops and equipment had to be moved by sea. ■ Only patrols which had the task of making a reconnaissance of each beach and bay before calling up the main body of troops travelled big distances on foot. Fleets of landing craft sped to and fro from the base camps to forward positions, turning the operations into a big amphibious exercise. It was almost a week before any major contact was made with the enemy apart from one skirmish on the north-east coast when a Japanese barge was captured and 13 Japanese killed. Patrols with native guides pin-pointed large enemy forces round Timbala Bay on Friday, September 24, and by Monday the New Zealanders were in a position to squeeze in on the enemy at the first light the following morning. A heavy artillery barrage preceded the infantry attack and a semi-circle of New Zealanders crept down the hills towards the bay. The Japanese camp area at the foot was found deserted, the enemy having left it the previous night in a hurry. Supplies of ammunition and rations lay strewn in the bivouac area.

First Major Contact

The attack was pressed on and late that morning heavy machine-gun and rifle fire heralded the first major contact close to the coast. The New Zealand line by then stretched from the north side of Timbala Bay r.-.J ran eastwards, penning the Japanese along a narrow strip of coast, leaving them one line of retreat to a point guai'ded by strong patrols at the head of Marquana Bay. Torrential rain overnight and throughout Wednesday slowed down the advance, though the New Zealanders on the left flank moved on to Umomo Island, near which a patrol had’ been ambushed the previous day and had been forced to withdraw after, several hours’ close fighting with rifle and grenades. At this stage it was still impossible to estimate the number of enemy casualties, though they were known to be substantial. Our own casualties were light.