by Russ Lockwood
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Bio
According to Ortiz's Qualification Record, a lineman "laid wires for telephone and telegraph communications, made connection between gun battery and operation post for directing artillery fire, spliced cable, mended broken connections, and repaired and replaced defective parts." He departed for Europe on January 10, 1945, arriving on January 21 at Le Havre, and then on to Camp Lucky Stripe, 40 miles inland. On February 12, he departed Rouen on the 17:20 train to Brussels. By mid-March, he was part of CT-4, in reserve near Igel, by the Moselle River. By the end of March, he was across the Rhine. On April 10th, he was in action at Ohrdruf. Eye-witness Accounts Here are the two eye-witness accounts transcribed from the originals.
Cannon Co. 354 Infantry "The cannons and trucks pulled into the town of Ohrdruf, Germany in the AM of April 10. The guns continued out of town about a half mile and set up. The wiremen started laying wire from the guns to the edge of town when suddenly 88 fire broke out, and they were ordered by Captain Gaylor to take cover as he had decided to change the location of the CP deeper in the town for better and safer coverage. The wiremen then called by phone back to me and asked me to meet them at the crossroads with more wire. The distance was about a half a mile, when I reached them they had received the location of the CP. So we all took off at once taking advantage of any cover we could as the shelling was heavy and we noticed that the line companies were taking cover in the ditch, cellars of houses, and were at a stand still. At one point, a Lt. from one of the line companies told us to take cover and asked if we were crazy. We stopped for a breather and when I suggested that we had better move out as the only way to stop the 88 firing and to get our guns firing was to get that wire in, Pfc. Ortiz without hesitation came along and with his help we were able to cross an open space, which was the square in the town where we noted a couple of the men receiving first aid treatment having been hit either by the 88 shelling or the small arms firing. We crossed the square a distance of about 500 yards safely, and continued another half mile or so to the CP where the order was soon sent back to the guns and they opened up. Shortly after, the 88 firing stopped and theline companies started to move out." Cannon Co. 354 Infantry
Divisional History The following comes from the 89th Division History (Infantry Journal Press, 1947, pg. 129) "At Ohrdruf, the 355th Regiment and the 4th Armored Division pried a scab from one of the ugliest sores when they captured the largest concentration camp liberated by American forces up to that time. It was located in a loathsome barracks area near a large army post which until the preceding December had been a German OCS training center. According to prisoner accounts the occupants of the camp, mostly slave laborers from eastern Europe, had been callously starved and beaten to death, or shot down at the whim of their SS overseers. Men who had died in the camp had been buried in a huge common pit near the barracks area. When news came of the approach of the Americans belated attempts were made to cover up the horrors of the place. Prisoners were forced to exhume the decomposed bodies of their former comrades and cremate them on a makeshift grid of railroad rails set up near the pit. With the American armor only a few hours away the SS guards had abandoned this project in a grisly state of half-completion, machine-gunned those prisoners too ill to walk in the courtyard of the concentration compound, and had fled. One guard attempted to disguise himself as a slave laborer but as he hurried through the gate along with a few prisoners who managed to escape in the confusion he was recognized by former victims of his brutalities and was killed on the spot with a heavy truck crank.
By April 10 the 353d completed mopping up in its zone and went into reserve at Friedrichroda, as Combat Team 4 on the right and Combat Team 5 on the left pressed the advance eastward toward the Saale River. The 3d Battalion 355th began negotiations for the surrender of Arnstadt. Lt. Albert E. Weber, Battalion S-2, acted as a peace emissary, but was told that the plans of the Supreme Command did not call for the surrender of Arnstadt. At 1300 the attack was launched and after an artillery and machine-gun duel, tank-infantry assault teams captured the town. A large labor battalion of women was freed. On the right the Germans still resisted tenaciously, augmenting their fire power with tanks and self-propelled artillery. The 1st Battalion, 354th, ran into heavy fire from high ground south of Ohrdruf and the 3d Battalion by-passed Wolfis after being held up nearly an hour by an enemy artillery concentration of over 200 rounds. These two spots were later cleared by the 87th Division. About 1815, the 3d Battalion, 354th, approached Gossel and Lt. Glen C. Belew, Battalion S-2, volunteered to go into the town with two German civilians and demand the surrender of the place. The trio immediately was taken prisoner by about sixty SS troops. By lagging behind when the Germans withdrew, Lieutenant Belew managed to escape and brought back information that the town was no longer occupied. Later that night the village was subjected to enemy mortar and artillery bombardment. The 2d Battalion on the left of the regimental zone took Espenfeld, reached the Gera river at Siegelbach, and on April 11 crossed the stream on a footbridge after an all-night artillery pounding. Near Witzleben the 2d Battalion ran into heavy fire from artillery, automatic, and 20mm. weapons. Company E was pinned down for six hours by heavy artillery." Post-War By the end of May, orders came through to go back to La Havre, where it was announced the division would be deactivated. However, before that would happen, on June 15, the 89th division (along with two others) was selected to "assist Com Z troops in the tremendous task of redeployment, that is, preparing and sending divisions, smaller units, and individuals to the United States for future service against Japan or demobilization." In other words, homecoming would be delayed. On October 9, 1945, Col. Curtis Renfro issued a letter informing the men of the 354th, Combat Tean 4, about the point system and who goes home when. This letter stated:
Camp Lucky Strike Normandy Assembly Area Command APO 89 US Army To: The Officers and Enlisted Men of CT-4 In view of the impending movement of the 89th Division to the zone of the Interior for subsequent deactivation, I know that many of you are wondering why you cannot return home with the Division, which you have served so faithfully. Since the point system of separation from the service governs in the case of each individual, it is inevitable that your unit as you know it and as you fought with it will be dissolved. Low point personnel ineligible for discharge must be reassigned to other units for further service. Their places must be filled by high point men eligible to go home. This, in effect, will destroy the integrity of platoons, companies, battalions and the Combat Team. Although it is disappointing to many of you to be suddenly and unceremoniously separated from your comrades and from your units, you must realize that eventual deactivation of any victorious army is an inevitable concomitant of war. You must accept the painful processes of demobilization in the same cheerful spirit that you have accepted induction and commitment to battle. You have bean good soldiers, you have fought a valiant fight and you have acquitted yourselves like men in all the tasks assigned to you, either on the battlefield or in connection with redeployment. Perhaps the most gruelling and thankless task of your service has been the redeployment assignment of seperating Camp Lucky Strike. Since your arrival at Camp Lucky Strike on 29 May 1945, you have planned, organized and operated the largest staging camp on the European Continent- Despite many obstacles and much privation, you have worked diligently day and night to enable the Combat Team to accomplish its mission. During the period 10 June to 8 October 1945, Le Havre port of embarkation shipped 640,784 troops to the states. Of that total, Camp Lucky Strike processed and staged 298,232 troops for the Le Havre port. This record speaks for itself. Now, before you are separated from the Combat Team, I want to commend you for your outstanding devotion to duty and superior ability. To each one of you I extend my sincere thanks for unstinted loyalty and cooperation and wish you success in your future occupation whether it be as civilian or soldier. -- Colonel 354th Infantry Commanding ![]() It must have been after this that he was transferred to the 377th AAA Btn "B" Battery. On December 7, 1945, Ortiz was in Paris and boarded the 12:30 train to Rouen, evidently with two others from the 519th AAA. The "General Railway Warrant" is at right. There is a pass dated December 18, 1945 (below) that places him in the Antwerp area.
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