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The D-Day landing was dangerous.

Heroes Remember

The D-Day landing was dangerous.

Transcript
When the door went down on the landing craft, machine gun fire opened up at the doorway and me and my two friends, I said the hell with this and I removed my equipment because we had about 65 pounds worth of equipment on us. I just removed my equipment and jumped over the side, along, the same thing as my two friends. Fortunately enough we landed on a sandbar, the water was just about up to our waist. On the other side of the barge fellows were jumping over the side because machine gun was firing at the doorway and they just sank. The guys just went under, they couldn't come up, not with 65 pounds of weight. And some of them more than that, especially a man carrying a Bren gun and all his ammunition and everything, probably carrying well over 100 pounds so he doesn't stand a chance. Actually there was only the three of us that went over the side on the, what would they call that, they would call that the starboard side; there was only three of us that got out of the barge all together. When we landed on the beach we were crawling on the sand and some officer said, “Who do you belong to?” We said, “We don't know!” He said, “Well you belong to me now, come over here!” So that was how I ended up with the Regina Rifles.
Description

Mr. Buote discusses the perils of trying to get ashore from an LCI; enemy fire and deep water. He describes his and two others' good fortune to jump into waste deep water off the landing craft's starboard side while everyone else goes over the port side and drowns.

Peter Buote

Peter Buote was born in Rustico, Prince Edward Island in 1924, the youngest of 7 children. His early years were spent in an orphanage. After moving to Moncton, New Brunswick he left school at age 14 and went to work in the Minto coal mines. At 16, he went to work at a dry-cleaners. Despite being of age, Mr. Buote was turned down for Naval service because he looked too young. He later joined the Regina Rifles and was involved in the D-Day landing. He served as a sniper in Europe. Mr. Buote also served in Korea, and after returning to Canada, operated a dry-cleaning business.

Meta Data
Medium:
Video
Owner:
Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:
1:36
Person Interviewed:
Peter Buote
War, Conflict or Mission:
Second World War
Battle/Campaign:
D-Day
Branch:
Army
Units/Ship:
Regina Rifles
Occupation:
Sniper

Copyright / Permission to Reproduce

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