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| By the night of January 16th the 90th
held a line facing east from Longvilly on the left through Oberwampach and
Niederwampach on the right. It now became evident that the enemy was
attempting orderly withdrawal from the area. Convoys of vehicles stretched
endlessly on the roads leading out of the Rundstedt "Bulge". But skies which
had been previously overcast now cleared and yielded to Allied control of
the air. The German retreating columns were mercilessly pounded, while the
90th's artillery joined in the holocaust of fire, inflicting
irreparable damage to the German machine... the same machine which had
proudly boasted one month before that Paris was its objective. On the following day, the 17th, the enemy counterattacked the 90th's forces at Oberwampach. Elements of the 2nd Panzer Division attempted doggedly to re-enter the city, SS troops screamed at the top of their lungs in a frenzy of fanaticism as they stormed the town from the north and east. Artillery concentrations plus the effective work of the 733rd Tank Destroyers battalion inflicted costly casualties and smeared the assault for "no gain". Three such attacks were repulsed on the first day.
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- 54 -
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