The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1945-07-20
UNRRA To Get
CONTINUED from Page one)


1,154 commercial trucks-light, med
ium and light-heavy-have been or
dered from American manufacturers.
all that have been made available
through the national allocating au-
thority
1000 u. S. Army trucks have been
made available through cutbacks. Ne
gotiations are under way for 1910
U. S. Army trucks from surplus
stocks in Italy
Negotiations are under way for 400
21a ton and so 71a ton trucks from
Army surplus stocks in Iran
ALLEGATIONS have been granted by
the combined production nd resources
board for the purchase of 3,700 trucks
in the United Kingdom Orders for
these are being placed
| The need for trucks in the liberated
areas is so great because other forms
of transportation, on which these ma
tons relied before the war, have be-
come almost negligible In Greece
some 100000 tons of supplies and
100000 people were transported an
nually by small coastal ships. There
were about 500 of these ships, whose
cargo capacity ranged from a few
tons to a maximum of 800 or 1000
tons. Ninety per cent of this fleet
has been destroyed or taken over by
the enemy. Of Greece's pre-war LOO
miles of railroads, only 800 miles are
are now useable. Destruction of rails
and of 260 of the major bridges and
more than half of the small bridges
and culverts has put the other 1,4OO
miles out of commission until extern
sive repairs have been made. The
300-mile stretch which is operating
connects with none of the main ports.
Of the 1000 trucks in use before the
war, to carry supplies from the coast
to the mountains, 5000 we're desr
troyed or confiscated by the enemy.
For mountain hauling Greece de-
pended largely on pack mules. Most
of these were requisitioned by the
Army, fell into the hands of the en-
envy or were killed or died of starva-
ton. Because of the world shortage
of livestock, it is impossible to re-
place these animals. So trucks must
perform the work of the coastal fleet,
the railroads and the pack trains
In Yugoslavia, more than 100000
tons of the supplies transported an
nually went by rail Inland water
ways carried about three million tons,
and million and half went over
the highways. The war put most of
railroads out of opera
ton, with 35 per cent of the rails
and go per cent of the bridges des-
-royed.
Lack of transport supplies is hamp-
ering Yugoslavia's efforts in self re-
mobilization. Because facilities to
move the food were not available,
100000 tons of corn in Vojvodina were
eft to rot in the fields last year when
JNRRA was not operating in Yugo-
;lavia, while in other parts of the
country people were starving The
ugar beet crop was lost for the same
eason.
Transportation was problem in
Jzechoslovakia before the war To-
lay transportation of any kind is al
most non-existent. The Germans took
way all of the locomotives from the
astern part of the country, and the
inland waterways, on which S00-ton
argos used to carry supplies, cannot
70 used because wrecked bridges have
blocked navigation. In
'oland, where supplies were carried
y rail, many stretches of the rail
Dads have practically been immobil-
sed by German destruction
Because restoration of railroads will
AXE some time and facilities for
of relief supplies must
e Immediately available, UNRRA is
living No. priority to trucks.