Dad, with the 94th Division also liberated a Concentration Camp In March of 1945 in the vicinity of Ludwigshafen, Germany. The camp had been abandoned by the Germans as the GIs got within a few days march. Around the camp there were these mounds covered with snow – they were piles of bones – human bones, now covered with the spring snow. Leading to the camp was a railway spur off the mainline. This was used to haul material and prisoners to the camp. About 300 yards down the mainline, there was a tunnel, but both ends were blocked by what looked like bombing damage or deliberate explosive. The smell coming through from the blocked tunnel reaked of death. The platoon was given the job of clearing the tunnel. Using a couple of front-end loaders they got one end opened up and took a look inside. It was horrifying – hundreds of bodies - men, women, kids, old people - all jumbled up in a tangle at the tunnel mouth. The bodies were partially submerged and decomposing. What had happened here? Most of the local towns people professed to know nothing of the camp or what went on there, but Dad said you could smell the camp for miles – the smell of death. The Captain had one of the guys who spoke German question a local farmer. “These people were prisoners at the camp – Jews, gypsies, homosexuals, other types too . As you Americans came close to this place, the Camp Kommandant had all the prisoners marched out of the camp and into this tunnel. They strung rolls of barbed wire across the openings to keep the people in – some were shot trying to get through the wire. Then the Germans blew up the holding dam that formed the lake just above the camp. The water from the lake pored down the hillside and began flooding the tunnel from the south end. Naturally, the people in the tunnel ran to the north end – where you GIs have opened it now. But the water came too fast and they couldn’t get beyond the wire. The few who did were machine-gunned by the Germans. The whole tunnel filled to the top with water until both entrances were overflowing. When the water finally stopped coming, the Germans used explosive charges to seal both openings to the tunnel. That was three- four days ago, before you GIs arrived. Much of the water has drained out of the tunnel now, so it is as you find it now.” . Once the G.Is saw what had to be done they rounded up the local towns people and forced them to drag out the bodies from the tunnel. The stench was terrible. The bodies were decaying and the flesh would come off the bones like it was made of clay. Dad was one of the GIs who were to guard the site and make sure the towns people didn’t run off before the job was done. The bodies were loaded into front-end loaders and dumped into a long trench the bull dozers had carved out. Then the bodies were covered with lime and finally buried in this mass grave.

Raymond Dudones