A Young Life Wasted - PFC Warren McManus (DOI)
Of all the deaths suffered by my platoon and company, the one that distressed me most was that of PFC Warren McManus, known to his buddies as Mac. Because his death was so unnecessary, so wasteful and so untimely.
Mac was one of four jeep drivers in the reconnaissance platoon when I arrived as a replacement officer on the Anzio Beachhead in Italy and was in the same job when he died in Germany on April 22, 1945, only 16 days before the War ended. He couldn’t have been more than 18 or 19 years old and he looked even younger. He was of slight build, with blonde hair, blue eyes, and an innocent baby face.
One might think that driving a jeep is not a particularly dangerous job and in many cases they would be right. But driving a recon platoon jeep is another story. On the Anzio Beachhead, to drive in daylight was to court disaster. The enemy had perfect observation from the Alban Hills surrounding us and any activity, on the dusty unpaved roads, brought immediate accurate shellfire. At night, Mac drove anti-parachute patrols on roads that were constantly shelled by enemy interdictory fire to disrupt supplies being brought forward after dark. In France and Germany, he drove on roads that no friendly forces had traveled. The enemy made extensive use of antitank mines and to run over one in a jeep meant instant death. In the hope of some protection, the floor and fire walls were lined with sand bags. I suspect that gave us more peace of mind, little though it was, than any real protection. And recon patrols drew enemy fire: from small arms, mortars, antitank guns and artillery.
Mac’s nerves were shot when I arrived and only got worse over the next fourteen months. I tried periodically to persuade the medical officer to have him evacuated. But to do so would invite others to try the same escape and so it just wasn’t done. Mac was of limited usefulness as a result and I tried to assign him the least dangerous jobs The other three drivers, knowing his condition, did not seem to resent this preferential treatment. Although one of my four drivers who was able to mask the effects of stress, later deserted , was court-martialed and sent to prison.
The driver’s weapon was the 30 caliber M1 carbine. The safe and proper way to carry it was with a full fifteen cartridge magazine, but uncocked and with no round in the chamber. To fire it, you had only to pull back the slide, release it and press the trigger. There was also a mechanical trigger lock as a further precaution. Mac was carrying his carbine with a round in the chamber, cocked and the safety in the firing position. In apparent preparation for possible enemy attack, he had placed it between the two front seats where he could reach and fire it instantly.
He delivered the package to the Division CP in the rear and apparently stopped on the way back to take off his field jacket which he folded neatly and put between the two front seats with the carbine lying on top, butt forward, muzzle pointing to the rear. When he got back, he turned off the ignition, reached for his field jacket and pulled it toward him. The carbine on top slid forward, the heavy butt sliding down the right side of the transmission hump swinging the muzzle toward his chest. As the carbine fell, one of the short (4 wheel drive) transmission stalks (with the knob missing) entered the trigger guard causing the weapon to pivot even more. The stalk then hit the trigger, the carbine fired and the bullet hit Mac in the chest. He screamed, leaped out of the jeep and started to run! It took three men to stop him and carry him into the Aid Station, screaming and fighting with blood pouring from his chest. A medic gave him a shot of morphine, he was loaded into an ambulance, taken to the nearest field hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.
After 14 months in combat, he died with only sixteen days to go. It was a stupid and unnecessary accident caused in large part by his agitated mental state. No one in his right mind carried a loaded weapon, safety off, that needs only ounces of pressure on the trigger to kill, in such circumstances. He was reported as “Died of Injuries†not “Killed in Actionâ€. Because of the timing, his parents may well have been notified of his death after the War was over. Mac was only one of more than 8,000 men who died in the 3rd Division in WWII, Of all these deaths, I know of no other that was so wasteful, unnecessary, and untimely.
Russ Cloer - 3_7_I_Recon
