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A Headstrong Officer Dies

Heroes Remember

A Headstrong Officer Dies

Transcript
When the bullets start flying, you know, there’s not shelling with one shell, but 10, 20, maybe, 30 guns firing at once, you know. The way they picked a position, command post, you know. You put the two, one shell on each side, 10 minutes time. Depends on what big position there was, like in Cassino, that was a big place and within 10, 15 minutes, look out. They got your target. They’ll get you. I think it was 15 minutes, we lost over 300 men. Just wiped the whole... I come in there to, the officer was killed and they want me to take the position until they got another officer so I can go keep on with my work. And it just, coming with the jeep and you know, jeep you got the open shield, you know, and shining right on that mountain, reflect, and I told the officer, “Move that jeep out of there or else...”. “I’m the officer there, I’m going to court marshall you.” Fifteen minutes, just picked out a couple of boots that was left out of him. Shell landed right in the jeep, blew him to pieces. And we lost the whole position then.
Description

Mr. Zayachkowski describes the death of an officer, fresh on the front, who doesn’t heed experienced advice.

Michael Zayachkowski

Michael Zayachkowski was born in St. Julien, Saskatchewan on September 10, 1923. He was one of ten children. As a youth growing up in the Depression, Mr. Zayachkowski attended school, worked on the farm and helped in the woods. He enlisted in late 1941, and after a stint as a physical training instructor at Shilo, was deployed overseas. During his years abroad, Mr. Zayachkowski served in North Africa, Italy and D-Day through to Holland as a front line medical technician. Following the war, and after farming for a while, he joined the RCMP, where he served twenty-five years.

Meta Data
Medium:
Video
Owner:
Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:
1:28
Person Interviewed:
Michael Zayachkowski
War, Conflict or Mission:
Second World War
Battle/Campaign:
Ortona
Branch:
Army
Units/Ship:
Royal Canadian Artillery
Rank:
Sergeant-Major

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