The escape from AUSCHWITZ was quieter and more tense than a dramatic movie-style escape.
On April 7, 1944, Rudolf Vrba and Alfred Wetzler ESCAPED from Auschwitz. Shortly before the evening roll call, the two crawled into a dugout beneath a large pile of timber near the inner fence. Their fellow prisoners covered the hiding place and scattered gasoline-soaked tobacco around it to confuse the dogs used in the search.
The camp alarm was set off, and regulations required a SEARCH to continue for three days and nights after an escape. As the two men crouched in the hole, soldiers searched the surrounding area. The men bit into wet rags to avoid making noise. After three nights, the search was called off.
At midnight on April 10, the two men crawled out of their hiding place and began their journey toward SLOVAKIA. They traveled mainly at night, hiding in forests and crossing streams to avoid detection.
Vrba and Wetzler reached Slovakia on April 21. There, they provided detailed information about the killings taking place at Auschwitz. Their testimony became the basis of the Vrba-Wetzler REPORT, which helped inform the outside world about Auschwitz and the danger facing Hungarian JEWS.
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