Living in a Slit Trench

A little kid asked me in school one time when I was speaking at one of the schools, “What’s a slit trench like?” I said, “Did you ever look down in a grave? ” “Yes.” “That’s what it’s like, just like a grave.” You’re four feet down. We tried to dig them four feet and so they are just this much and you’re looking out and you stay down below all the time because when a shell lands, you know, down the end of this building, all the shrapnel comes over all the slit trenches. So you could get hit. I got hit twice. I got hit once in the hand with a piece of shrapnel. I got hit in the helmet, cut my helmet. I put a piece of tape over it. The blood was running out of my hand. I hit one of those veins here. I put a piece of black tape that I had off of one of the cans and that was it but it never hurt me anyway. And the one that hit my helmet didn’t hurt anyway so…

Mr. Chiasson describes a slit trench and the importance of taking cover.

Havelyn Chiasson

Mr. Chiasson was born May 14, 1921 in Misquamicut Island, New Brunswick. He attended an English and French school while his father worked as a fisherman. When war was declared in 1939, Mr. Chiasson was recruited to the Carleton York Regiment in Bathurst and later with the North Shore Regiment, a regiment he would remain with until end of wartime. Mr. Chiasson held the position of wireless operator and found himself travelling overseas which would become a 5 ½ year experience. Mr. Chiasson was part of the D-Day and Battle of Normandy landings where he reached the beaches in St. Aubin-sur-Mer, Normandy. He carried on through to Holland. Mr. Chiasson remains very active about his service years, speaking to our youth about the importance of service to our country.