WARTIMES.ca

Following its assault sections, No. 22 Canadian Field Ambulance's main party landed about six o'clock on the afternoon of D Day when the battle had moved well inland. While the main party assembled near the beach a site was chosen for an advanced dressing station at Beny-sur-Mer. It was ready to receive casualties by nine o'clock on the morning after D Day. Here the advanced dressing station was joined during the day by members of its assault sections who had landed with the 8th Brigade. This site was under enemy fire for the first 48 hours and four members of the unit were wounded. These men, together with the casualties being received from the 8th and 9th Brigades, were evacuated back to British field dressing stations at Bernires-sur-Mer. Beny-sur-Mer remained the site of No. 22 Canadian Field Ambulance Headquarters until the attack on Carpiquet (4 July). Casualty collecting posts were set up further inland at Cairon, three miles from Beny-sur-Mer and at Neuf-Mer, a little further on. Fortunately, casualties during this holding period were only about 12 per day of all types of sick and wounded, and the ambulance unit was able to use the period of calm to improve its facilities.