Page 7

At that time the Germans were using radio-controlled glider bombs
and my battle station was at a transmitter-receiver set designed to
jam these missiles. We were watching the battle when suddenly I saw
one of our bombers veer sharply to the left. A tiny red dot was
visible midway the plane and suddenly it burst into a ball of flame
and a miniature red cross hurtled downward. Soon it just disappeared.

By now the shells were falling all around us and bursting with
sharp cracks but they weren’t close enough to worry us very much.
Two German planes were cruising overhead and we wondered why they
didn’t attack us. One of our planes began laying a smoke screen
around the ships then but we were too close in to the beach to take
advantage of it. We were anchored 1200 yards off the OMAHA BEACH.
Consequently we were their best target and they soon had our range.
The two spotter planes overhead were calling their shots and soon
the shells were falling thick and fast. We weighed anchor and
turned our fantail to them like an old maid to a marine. It was
definitely time to change our position but we were late in doing
so or perhaps our number was just destined to fall that morning.

Suddenly everything seemed to explode at once and I felt like
I had fallen into a concrete mixer. I went up, came down and made
about a dozen round trips between the deck and the overhead before
I finally stopped.

I guess I was more surprised than anything at first and then
I realized we had been hit. We had hit a mine and also about nine
eight-inch shells hit us about the same time. When I got to my
feet I discovered I couldn’t stand on my left leg and I had a deep
gash on my head.

3