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HALIFAX DISASTER RECORDS OFFICE
ARCHIBALD MACMECHAN, F.R.S.C.
DIRECTOR
HALIFAX, N.S.
4
turn on the light when opening the linen closet for fear of stepping on some-one. Got used to stepping over people. There were two long lines of injured people in the corridors, where it was very cold. friday night was worse than Thursday. The wards were warm and comfortable, but the patients were almost entirely in the charge of young girls. Only one nurse came into the ward Miss McKinnon was working in, from time to time. *Mrs Ward?* She herself was running all the time. A doctor brought a nurse in to bandage the arm of an injured woman and asked Miss M. if she could do it. The arm was torn in parallel lines as if with an iron rake. Patient wished Miss M. to assist rather than nurse. seemed a very intelligent woman. Was afraid her husband, a soldier at the front, would go back if he found she had a glass eye. Very few that couldn't joke. Miss M. was shocked to hear that this patient was dead. Case of woman with six children in terrible grief. Had six children, was getting two of them ready for school and did not know what had become of them.
Case of woman with scalp torn off. When it was removed the eye fell out. She was deaf, dumb and blind with her hea d bound up, but still conscious. Church of England. Miss M. telephoned for Archdeacon Armitage, who came at once and read prayers. She was unconscious at this time. The people about seemed better satisfied that there had been a religious ceremony. Miss M. praised Velma Moore and Gwen Fraser particularly for the way they stuck at their work onThursday night. They had had no previous experience, had never been up all one night before. It was amateur work, but they used judgement and common-sense, which took the place of training. The head


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MG 1 volume 2124 number 200 c