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Extract Jun adminity weekly atelligue Refund
No.15 (Lint Ime, 1940). body on on T.09474. 16
DUNKIRK BEACHES.
243
The following narrative, based on noted made at the time,
has been contributed by an officer attached to R.A., Dover,
during the evacuation of the B.E.F. from Dunkirk.
Wednesday, May 29.
With R.A., Dover, and his staff I embarked in H.M.S. "ESK",
and at 2000 sailed for Dunkirk beaches. Halfway across the
Channel and it got dusk, huge fires showed the position of
Dunkirk and vividly lit up the eastern sky. A pall of black
smoke hung over the coast. At first it seemed that the whole
town must be burning, but as we approached I found that the
fires were confined to an area close westward of the town and
harbour where the oil refineries and storages were situated.
We steamed slowly up the narrow coastal channel and past
Dunkirk to the ten miles of beaches from which the troops were
being embarked. We had on board with us the naval beach
parties who were to be landed to superintend the boat embarka-
tion between Dunkirk at the western end and La Panne at the
eastern. The beach parties were put ashore in three sections at
different points in the ships' boats. The night was overcast and
very dark, and it was not possible to see how much activity there
was inshore. Boats were few, and not many ships were lying off
the beaches.
Thursday, May 30.
At 0200 we transferred to H.M.S. "HEBE" of Bray, and pro-
ceeded eastward along the coast to La Panne. Dawn found us
still there, and it brought with it one of the most astounding and
pathetic sights I have ever seen. Almost the whole ten miles of
beach was black from sand-dunes to waterline with tens of
thousands of men. In places they stood up to their knees and
waists in water waiting for their turn to get into the pitiably few
boats. It seemed impossible that we should ever get more than
a fraction of all these men away. The immediate and urgent
need was for more boats - both small pulling boats for inshore
work, and power boats to tow them seawards to the ships. These
we asked for, and as the day progressed many more arrived.
The weather to-day was most favourable, with low cloud and
poor visibility, little wind and a calm sea. Even so, there was
considerable surf on the beaches and inshore boat work was not
easy. The day was spent in getting into touch with the situation
ashore through S.N.O., Dunkirk, and the G.O., C. in C., and in
directing ships and boats as they arrived to where they were most
needed. It had been intended to keep "HEBE" free of troops for
R.A., Dover, but ships were too few and she filled up in Dunkirk
early in the day. After despatching her to Dover R.A. transferred
his flag to various destroyers as they waited to fill up off the
beaches.
One of the great difficulties was getting empty boats back
inshore. They had no boat keepers, and naturally a man, having
once got off to a ship, was not keen to return inshore again.
Some of the soldiers, however, did fine work in this wayy, and
went back many times.
During the whole of this day I saw no bomb drop on the
beaches, nor any enemy aircraft flying low to machine gun.
There were various ships attached by aircraft, but I do not think
any was hit. Air superiority was well maintained during the
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