SOLDIER’S ESCAPE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 9 April 1942, Page 4

SOLDIER’S ESCAPE

AMAZING ADVENTURES SIX MONTH’S ABSENCE, THREE TIMES A CAPTIVE. Almost incredible adventures are described by an Auckland soldier, Sergeant James Trevor Donovan, who reported at the Nev/ Zealand Expeditionary Force’s base camp at El Mahdi almost six months after he had been captured by the Germans in Greece. His wife 'is Mrs Gwendoline Donovan, who is serving in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force at a station near Auckland.

After seven days’ fighting on the slopes of Mount Olympus, says Sergeant Donovan, the word came that German tanks were behind his force and that every man had to make his way on his ov/n as best he could. He took a small party with him and attempted to force his way out to the read. Stopped and wounded by the Germans, he then elected to go back into the hills and try to get down to the coast.

CAPTURED BY PANZER TROOPS. At one small town his party, by this time reduced to three, was sheltering in a graveyard when they heard what they thought was a civilian truck approaching. Sergeant Donovan jumped, on a wall to hail it, but discovered to his horror that the sound had been caused by two trucks loaded With Germans. The New Zealanders hurriedly dropped out of sight. The same night they managed to get a small rowing boat and for the next four days they made their way down the coast. On the fourth they landed at a small village, but when they were asleep that night the advance party of a German panzer column came into, the township and the New Zealanders were awakened with the information that they were prisoners. “I travelled with the panzers for four days to Corinth ” says Sergeant Donovan, “but when the Germans told me that I was to be shifted to a prison camp at Salonika I disagreed with them and while in transit I escaped. This was near Lamia on June 13..50me Greek peasants gave me civilian clothing and I started to make my way toward Volos. CAPTURED AGAIN. “When I was 10 miles from this place I was again picked up by the Germans. I was accused of engaging in a spot of sabotage. They were right in their accusations, but I had no opportunity to convince them otherwise. They locked me in a small Outbuilding and left one man on guard outside.” Sergeant Donovan says he escaped from this building by calling the guard inside on the protext that he was verysick, as he says he actually was, and stunning him with a piece of wood. This he says was on June 26 and he again began to make his way toward Lamia. However, he became very ill and was forced tlo stay in a small village near his destination. ORDERED TO BE SHOT. Sergeant Donovan was there until July 26, when he was again discovered by a German patrol and taken into Lamia. Because he had. no military identification and was in possession of plans which did not belong to him, he says he was ordered to be shot; “I had three days of waiting to be taken out. After the third day I was able to talk my way out of it and was transferred to the camp at Salonika. Here I was placed in cells and left to the tender mercies of a number of Germans who had absolutely no sense of humour at all. They used me for every" thing from a punchball to a football. As a result he says he lost most of his teeth, but had his determination increased. After being released into the compound he set himself to escape again.

escape through tunnel. “This was done,” he continues, by breaking through into a cellar under one of the buildings and cutting through a concrete floor about four inches thick, and then comrnencing to dig a tunnel under the 'wire. The only implements to hand were a pair of pliers and a butcher’s knife. The tunnel was about 30ft. long and the job took from August 1 until. September 21, when I finally escaped. In the tunnel I was assisted by four others, but they refused to leave the prison camp. After getting away, he says he was helped again by the Greek people. He dismisses the remainder of his journey back to Egypt by saying he made his way through Turkey, arriving eventually at El Maadi on December 6. HP says he had since rejoined his old battalion. . .. .■