Missing The Boat: War Stories of Thomas Alan Dirkin

60 The Germans decided to imprison the POWs in camps in eastern Germany and Poland. Once a critical mass had been reached in the barbed wire carrels, long lines of prisoners were forced to march east. Typically, the POWs from Dunkirk walked between 12-30 miles per day throughout the summer of 1940. In general, prisoners slept outside in wet and dry conditions with occasional opportunities to be locked up for the night in farm buildings. Even though the energy expenditure of the march was high, food was minimal and infrequent. Weeks went by. Men became sick, exhausted and nearly all were dehydrated. Dysentery started on the march east. For many, defecating a solid stool was to be five years in the waiting. The men ate all and everything they could find: crops from fields, moldy bread, small mammals and grass