I received this from Fred Weber, WWll veteran, portions of which will be published in the Huntington Hills Holler in January.
When you have lived the years I have, there are certain weather phenomenon that remain in your memory it seems forever. Although this one happened sixty years ago, it still takes the number one spot in my memory book. It was the coldest and most bitter winter Europe had seen in the twentieth century and over a million soldiers - Yank, Brits and German - were key players and eyewitnesses. The continent lay victim to harsh, gale-like winds from the Baltic and North Seas blowing across the low countries, France and Germany. Somewhere deep in the Ardennes Forest these killer winds collided with milder winds blowing north from the Mediterranean Sea. The moist air from the South of France turned to snow, then freezing ice. Military vehicles couldn't navigate the roadways covered by many inches of ice. Even tank treads had difficulty maneuvering on the ice. The temperatures fell to below freezing, the wind chill dipped to below the zero mark. All aircraft was grounded due to milky-thick fog and wings and carbureators icing up. The frontline troops, be they infantry, tankers or medics, had no place to go to warm themselves. Lighting fires was forbidden, as they gave away their position to the enemy.
This was The Battle of the Bulge. Your very life depended on three things: alertness, military discipline and the Buddy Sytem. Living on the ground in a gully or foxhole, meant periodic movement or you would freeze to death in a matter of hours.You always had a craving for food, especially hot liquids,. You were lucky to have several K-rations to keep your metabolism going. To keep from freezing lying on the ground, whenever possible, we formed standing teepees, three men standing arm in arm, two dozing as the third stood watch. Some were less fortunate than others as bodies were loaded on jeep trailers and 2 1/2 ton trucks like cordwood because they either slept to their death or died of battle wounds.
These are some of the thoughts I had as Central Ohio encountered a similar winter as the one in 1944 - 45. Yes, this will be one of those memorable winters the younger generations will talk about. I told my wife, how difficult it is to imagine spending days and weeks in this type of frigid cold in an open field or forest. Many of us, numbering over 300,000 homes in Ohio, suffered serious ''inconveniences'' for periods of a few days to over a week. I'm certain there are other ''dogfaces'' who feel the same if they, also had encountered the battlefield conditions of the ''Winter of 1944.''
Much credit must be given to the power company crews of AEP and South Central Power, ably assisted by volunteer crews from electric power companies from fifteen other states. All these people worked 12 - 15 hour shifts and gave up Christmas celebrations with their families in order to restore electricity and heat for those who endured ''without'' Many thanks and best wishes go to the real heroes of our ''war'' during Christmas 2004.
By closet philosopher
When you have lived the years I have, there are certain weather phenomenon that remain in your memory it seems forever. Although this one happened sixty years ago, it still takes the number one spot in my memory book. It was the coldest and most bitter winter Europe had seen in the twentieth century and over a million soldiers - Yank, Brits and German - were key players and eyewitnesses. The continent lay victim to harsh, gale-like winds from the Baltic and North Seas blowing across the low countries, France and Germany. Somewhere deep in the Ardennes Forest these killer winds collided with milder winds blowing north from the Mediterranean Sea. The moist air from the South of France turned to snow, then freezing ice. Military vehicles couldn't navigate the roadways covered by many inches of ice. Even tank treads had difficulty maneuvering on the ice. The temperatures fell to below freezing, the wind chill dipped to below the zero mark. All aircraft was grounded due to milky-thick fog and wings and carbureators icing up. The frontline troops, be they infantry, tankers or medics, had no place to go to warm themselves. Lighting fires was forbidden, as they gave away their position to the enemy.
This was The Battle of the Bulge. Your very life depended on three things: alertness, military discipline and the Buddy Sytem. Living on the ground in a gully or foxhole, meant periodic movement or you would freeze to death in a matter of hours.You always had a craving for food, especially hot liquids,. You were lucky to have several K-rations to keep your metabolism going. To keep from freezing lying on the ground, whenever possible, we formed standing teepees, three men standing arm in arm, two dozing as the third stood watch. Some were less fortunate than others as bodies were loaded on jeep trailers and 2 1/2 ton trucks like cordwood because they either slept to their death or died of battle wounds.
These are some of the thoughts I had as Central Ohio encountered a similar winter as the one in 1944 - 45. Yes, this will be one of those memorable winters the younger generations will talk about. I told my wife, how difficult it is to imagine spending days and weeks in this type of frigid cold in an open field or forest. Many of us, numbering over 300,000 homes in Ohio, suffered serious ''inconveniences'' for periods of a few days to over a week. I'm certain there are other ''dogfaces'' who feel the same if they, also had encountered the battlefield conditions of the ''Winter of 1944.''
Much credit must be given to the power company crews of AEP and South Central Power, ably assisted by volunteer crews from electric power companies from fifteen other states. All these people worked 12 - 15 hour shifts and gave up Christmas celebrations with their families in order to restore electricity and heat for those who endured ''without'' Many thanks and best wishes go to the real heroes of our ''war'' during Christmas 2004.
By closet philosopher
