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[Mark in Rochester]

story of crossing

World War II Story - St. Goar, Germany - Chapter 18 - Gallagher

The guide patrol embarked at 0130 (the next morning) under extremely heavy fire. The patrol was forced back, and consequently no guide lights were placed. The platoon of engineer reinforcements requested at 0100 had not arrived by 0200, and the main assault got underway with only twenty-nine boats. At the embarkation, heavy small arms fire, machine guns, 20 mm flak guns, and 88 mm artillery were received from the German side and it continued throughout the crossing. Assault boats were riddled with holes, and many men were killed or wounded. Some boats never made it across, and they were swept downstream. The engineers manning the oars paddled like mad, and the riflemen crouched low in the boats (See Fig. 93). The survivors who made the crossing intact floundered ashore and advanced into St. Goarshausen where they met even heavier resistance. No boats or crews returned from the initial wave. It was later determined that the engineer crews fought as infantry when they determined that their boats were unserviceable and not fit to return.