Lovat River
Seela was awarded the Knight's Cross in May 1942, while he was a "Hauptsturmführer" (captain) and in command of 3rd Company, SS Pioneer Battalion "Totenkopf". Despite severe losses and meager supplies, his unit occupied the Russian village of Korowitsch (east of Staraya Russa) in the Demyansk Pocket for one month. Seela and his men prevented the village from being recaptured, denying the Soviet Army access to the crucial bridge over the Lovat River.