24th Canadian Field Ambulance
Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps
War Diary

Editor's Note:   This page contains a trans­crip­tion of the war di­ary of the 24th Cana­dian Field Ambu­lance of the Royal Cana­dian Army Med­ical Corps for the dates of the bat­tle of Ot­ter­loo.  Mi­nor spel­ling and punc­tua­tion er­rors have been cor­rec­ted and large num­bers of ab­bre­via­tions and ac­ro­nyms have been spel­led out.  The con­ven­tion of using full cap­ital let­ters for place names has not been fol­lowed here.  Mili­tary ranks and unit names have been spel­led out.  This trans­crip­tion was made from a photo­graph of the ori­ginal war diary loca­ted at Lib­rary and Arch­ives Canada and con­tained in box 15898 of re­cord group 24. 
 
765785 Arnhem
The unit staged overnight in the “ghost town” of Arnhem.  Reveille at 0700 hours, breakfast at 0730 hours, and we moved off at 1100 hours.  The unit moved by convoy to Otterloo, map reference 653911, where a light advanced dressing station was open by 1700 hours in a building formerly a garage.  “E” Section under Lieutenant Liscumb proceeded on to map reference 614935 for the purpose of holding a site pending a coming move of the advanced dressing station.  After an early supper the unit bedded down gladly after a tiring convoy.  Our belief that a light set-up would be sufficient was badly shattered at 2300 hours when the now famous battle of Otterloo commenced.  The battle was still raging at the day's end.

653911, Otterloo
The coolness of the night is still warm with the heat of hostilities.  This will be a never-​to-​be-​forgotten episode in the history of the 24th Canadian Field Ambulance when the battle raged about its own doors.  Once again the Canadian fighting qualities had been proved when, at 0830 hours the battle had ceased, 400 Germans lay dead in the fields, ditches and roads, and 250 had been taken prisoner from a force estimated to be 1000 strong.  Through­out all the period of hostilities the advanced dressing station operated in a very commendable fashion and evacuations were carried out in a normal routine.  Royal Canadian Army Service Corps personnel deserve special mention for their part in the defence of Otterloo.  Through­out the day the advanced dressing station was busy receiving casualties, the greater part of whom had been wounded in the afore­men­tioned fray.  Of the 146 casualties handled, a pleasing feature was the fact that 53 of these were prisoners of war.  “E” Section returned to the unit as the plan for the move to the proposed site at map reference 614935 had been cancelled.  Later in the day this section proceeded to act as an advance party in this location.  The day was very warm and clear.

653911 Otterloo
Clear, warm, and sunny day.  The advanced dressing station closed down at 1200 hours, and evacuations are now going through 7th Canadian Light Field Ambulance.  During the unit's stay at Otterloo, 211 casualties were evacuated.   ·  ·  ·