WANGANUI CAMP

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 244, 12 September 1940, Page 9

WANGANUI CAMP

VARIED EXPERIENCES

CASES OF AIEASLES,

WANGANUI, Sept. 11. Ten men from the First Battalion, Wellington Regiment, camp on the Wanganui Racecourse are clown with measles and have been sent to the isolation ward of the Wanganui Hospital. There were several cases of measles in the battalion before it left Wellington for Wanganui, but the men concerned were left behind.

The men in hospital are reported to be in a satisfactory condition. . Sor-gcant-Alajor J. Bennett said that only 15 men had reported sick, including 10 with measles. Two others were in hospital, one under observation for what was thought might be append iritis, and the other with bronchitis. Three others were in the camp hospital in the stewards’ building; they had only minor ailments. There are about 800 men in camp. AIR, RAID TRAINING.

Twice this week the men have had air raid experience, when Vickers Vincent bombers from the defence aerodrome swooped down unexpectedly on the camp. On the first day the machines flew at a low altitude above the troops’ training centre, gunners aiming their weapons from the rear cockpit on to the soldiers below. Troops in their turn mounted their light machine-guns on to their mounts for anti-aircraft work, and riflemen had aiming practice and rapid-fire training at the raider planes. The anti-aircraft platoon on the occasion of the second day’s raid had

riflo fire trained on the planes 10 seconds after their appearance was heralded by the drone of engines, and the light, machine-guns with their capacity for firing at a rate of GOO rounds a minute were mounted on stands and ready for action in 15 seconds. Every man turned out on Tuesday night, when a general alarm was sounded as a result of threatened damage to marquees and tents by a heavy gale, accompanied by rain. The alarm was given at 6.45 p.m., when the large Y.M.C.A. recreational marquee, containing indoor sports and reading facilities, partly collapsed. The contents were removed and the marquee let down. The • largest in the camp, that of the Salvation Army," and also the second Y.AI.CA. tent, were also let down as a precautionary measure and the contents were removed. Transport trucks were brought into action and parked on the dismantled marquees to hold them down In the heavy rain storm, which was a continuance of intermittent falls of the day, the men tightened the guy ropes of 150 tents by torch and hurricane light. The experience was really a solid test of their reaction to service under most trying conditions, hut they rose to the occasion like seasoned campaigners and got more fun than misery out of their experience. Officers not only directed operations, but lent a hand.