RAILWAY GROUP

Wairarapa Times-Age, 20 September 1941, Page 6

RAILWAY GROUP

NEW ZEALAND’S OPERATIONS PEAKED HATS IN TOBRUK. NON-DIVISIONAL UNIT. CAIRO, August 27. Until a few weeks ago New Zealand was worthily represented in the amazing and now world famous garrison which is defending Tobruk. A detachment of railwaymen working the port there shared the garrison's trials and hardships from the time the siege was begun, and made a name for itself before it was withdrawn. The party belonged to the Railway Operating Group, a unit of non-di-visional engineers whose detachments are scattered today from the Western Desert to Syria. Their New Zealand peaked hats may be seen in engine cabs, marshalling yards, wayside stations, workshops and harbour depots in Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Transjordania. Nearly a year ago they became a familiar sight along the entire length of the Western Desert line, and now troops returning from leave tell of their surprise at finding themselves in trains driven and fired by New Zealanders as far away as Damascus and the Sea of Galilee. “Non-divisional” means that the unit operates independently of the main New Zealand force, and receives its working orders direct from Middle East headquarters. That, is why its members are always liable to be split up and assigned to duties in all parts of the vast Middle East command. The fighting troops of the force see comparatively little of them or of the railway construction and survey units. Months ago a small survey parly was sent to the Sudan to report on bridges there, and another - party went to Greece soon after Italy had attempted to invade that country. Construction men have worked in the desert ever since they arrived in Egypt. For almost a whole year, trains tunning from Alexandria to Meisa Matt uh have carried New Zealand drivers, firemen and guards as reserves for the Egyptian Government crews, while the station staffs have been supplemented by other of our railwaymen. In some ways it is like a continuation of their peacetime jobs, but at least once it gave scope for courage and devotion to duty under fire. The enemy tried periodically to disrupt this vital supply line. When bombers once attacked a train passing over it, the Egyptian driver and fireman and the New Zealand fireman were killed. Though seriously wounded by several bullets, the New Zealand reserve driver took over the controls and brought the train safely to a stop. A railway detachment followed the British advance into Libya, and was given control of a small Italian railway running out of Benghazi. It won high praise for its work, which was interrupted by the withdrawal of the British forces in the face of the fresh Axis push. Another detachment was assigned to duty in Solium and then in Tobruk, where it became part of the heroic garrison. Its job there was not railway work but the unloading of supply ships by lighter, which it carried out traditionally well thiough weeks of incessant air attack. Our railwaymen today are handling military stores and controlling trains at wharves, depots and marshalling yards at Suez and many other points in Egypt. Nearly three months ago a detachment was sent to Palestine, and it is now operating through Transjordania into Syria on the historic and difficult Yarmuk Valley line, which was built by the Turks and came into prominence in Lawrence s time. Others are in a railway workshops in Palestine, others again at stations in the same country, and there are a few more supplementing existing railway crews in northern Syria. They have everywhere built up a splendid repu-| tation.