EVACUATION OF WOUNDED.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 July 1918, Page 6

EVACUATION OF WOUNDED.

ARRANGEMENTS CONTRASTED. (From Our Own Correspondent). Wellington, July 19. In the course of a lecture before the Garrison Officers Institute, LieutenantColonel M. Holm'Ss, N.Z.M.C, mentioned the partial break down of the arrangements for the evacuation of New Zealand wounded at the battle of Chunuk Bair, iu August, lOilu. He said that in spite of the fact that the ambulance units were below strength and were hampered by the prevalence of sickness among the personnel, tho wounded were got down to the beach. Between 10.00 ft and wounded from the forces with which tho New Zealanders were associated were taken to the beach, in spite of enormous difficulties, during four days. Five fully-equipped hospital ships lay about 200 yards away. But for some reason never fully explained there was a lack of small boats to maintain communication between the beach and the hospital ships. Many hundreds of men, including New Zealanders, died owing to this break down in the scheme of evacuation. * The officer contrasted the arrangements made on that occasion with the extraordinarily complete system in operation at tho battle of McssinA- The New Zealand front was not more than SOO yards -wide on that occasion, and preparations had been made for dealing with 5000 wounded. The medical staff had been at work for ten weeks attending to every detail and providing for every contingency. The chain of communication was not merely complete but was duplicated and guarded at every point, with the result that even the destruction of a main dressing station by the explosion of an ammunition dump on the eve of the attack did not disorganise the arrangements. The wounded reached London on the dav they were hit.