On November 1st I suffered a work accident. While carrying a railroad tie, my right hand got caught between two ties. I only felt a slight pain in my middle finger and didn’t give it much attention but soon after noticed blood was dripping down my glove onto the wrist. Upon shaking the glove, out fell my finger tip! I was immediately sent via the truck to column where the doctor’s assistant stitched the finger and on November 2nd I was sent to the hospital at Pecora, staying there until May 27 1947. The skin gradually grew over my wound and even the fingernail grew back, although it was quite unique and ugly. The finger is about a centimeter shorter than normal.
Having by now recovered sufficiently, I assumed duties of the orderly in the hospital, receiving free food for this service. In the hospital worked another Estonian from Haapsalu, Ed Tomsal, who frequently received extra food from the kitchen and sometimes shared it with me. I also received while in the hospital four care packages, such that I as well fed and recovered my health and vigour. I had to share from my package with the doctors, assistants and older orderly. And of course some of the packages contents simply disappeared, stolen. Now I owned two pairs of glasses which had arrived via the packages.
Part of my duties as the orderly meant having to walk almost 3 km to the nearby forest to cut wood and bring it back via toboggan. One time during a sever frost my nose got frostbite. Irregardless of this we had to go back after lunch to retrieve more wood. The temperature had dropped even lower and the cold attacked my nose yet again. I required quite some time to heal and to this day it still bothers me. Of course I was not alone among those who suffered from frostbite to one body part or another.
On May 27 I was released from hospital and sent to the city with a work detail, where I stayed until July 30. And on the second night in this work detail my bag was stolen containing everything that had remained from the care packages including a pair of glasses.
I worked on the railroad, in the stevedore’s brigade. The work was very difficult, physically demanding. We had to carry sacks weighing 100kg, rolls of wire and other such materials. But there were also light days, where we had to clean out the warehouse, sweeping and general tidying.
On July 30 a few of us inmates were sent via train further to the north. We stepped off at Haonvec. The difference in landscape and climate was marked. Whereas in Pecora one could see the tundra off in the very distance, here there was nothing but tundra. It was damp, foggy and reminded me of late fall days in Estonia.
We were assigned to a column, and our barracks were filled with several criminal elements. After just a half hour of rest, all of us recent arrivals were sent to unload a bunch of material from the woods. Upon our return it was evident that all our packages had been rifled. I lost what little possessions I had left, including my glasses. But this was not yet the end. Shortly after we had returned to the barracks, another couple of genuine criminal types arrived to further search our belongings including our clothing. Whoever dared to resist was given a thorough beating. They took away whatever they wanted. I lost a pocket mirror and comb.
Along with my writing materials, I had stolen from my pack my wife’s picture. I turned to the man who had stolen this and he made a big show of returning it to me. But later, somewhere or other, it was again stolen from me along with some envelopes, and I was ultimately left without the picture.
On August 2nd I was directed on foot even further north to another work detail where I stayed until September 1. I worked there on building the railroad.
On August 26 I suffered a serious injury, my entire right hand got caught between two railroad ties and was thoroughly crushed. Blood burst from every finger, only my thumb was spared. And the hand swelled up appallingly.
On September 1 I was sent to the Hanove hospital, and stayed there until November 16. When my hand had sufficiently healed, the chief doctor directed me to work in the hospital accounting department where I worked as the supply accountant until I was sent away to a new location. My pay for this work was simply extra food.
On November 16 a group of us ill prisoners was sent a little to the south. We were transported on the railway, in garbage cars, about 10 km from “Inta 2” station to another hospital where I stayed until April 23, 1948. From January 2 on, until I left hat place, I worked as the kitchen accountant. And my wages were as usual simply free food. I must say that at this hospital I was well fed and protected from the criminal elements that were still around in abundance.
In April I received a letter which informed me of the murder of my wife’s mother and the robbery of her farm in Viru-Jaagupi, which happened the previous November 30, 1947.
On April 23, 1948 I was signed out of the hospital and returned to the Inta work detail. I was in a work detail barracks made up entirely of political prisoners. Life was significantly better with this group. Naturally there were individuals who had sour temperaments and who were to be avoided, but at least with this group there were no robberies nor beatings. We only came across the criminal types on work details itself. We were assigned to build a village there, and I took part as a labourer’s helper, lugging by hand and wheelbarrow stones, sand, bricks, lumber etc.
On May 10 I was sent with a bunch of prisoners to another group in the same village. This was a recently formed work group.
On August 24 I once again suffered an accident. While unloading logs from a wagon, one rolled onto my right foot, violently striking it against another log. It was impossible to continue as my foot soon swelled up, causing me immense pain. I lay on the grass to the end of the work day and then the foreman carried me back to the barracks. This was the only foreman whom I remember as having any streak of humanity. His name was Sestopalov. I shared my package contents with him quite willingly, whereas with others I only did this against my free will, and only out of necessity. By coincidence, that night a doctor was staying with us and he directed that I should be signed into the hospital. But time stretched on, and it was not until September 15 that I would finally make it to the hospital. Until then I lay in the barracks, being signed off from work as it was quite impossible for me to do any physical work. In the hospital they found out I had cracked a cartilage in my leg.
After lying in the hospital; bed for barely a few days, the chief accountant summoned me again to work as a bookkeeper, which position I held until my release from hospital January 15, 1949.
