Extracted from Vol II Engineer History, Mediterranean Theater, Fifth Army.
19th Engineer Combat Group
For the first half of April, the 401st and 402nd Engineer Combat Battalons of the 19th Engineer Group, Commanded by Colonel John D. Cole, Jr., were mainly occupied with road maintenance on Route #6531 and the route between Loiano and Quinzano. Culverts were widened, narrow places were dozed and blasted to allow two-way traffic, ditches were cleaned out and Bailey bridges were removed. The roads became very dusty in April due to the very dry spring. Water tankers, some from the 405th Engineers and some "homemade" ones, were used to combat this difficulty.
401st Engineer Combat Battalion
As II Corps jumped off on 16 April, the 401st Battalion under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Jack S. Berry had Company "A" working with the 109th Battalion, and Companies "B" and "C" with the 316th Battalion in support of the 34th and 91st Divisions, respectively. Company "B" Worked up Highway #65, and shortly thereafter the battalion command post went up the same road to a bivouac near Sabbione.
The work of the 401st on Route #65 was mostly the construction of bypasses and clearing of minefields. At Pianoro, a bypass had to be constructed through a minefield. A lane ws cleared using both mine detectors and prodding; nevertheless, a D-7 bulldozer was blown up.
It appeared that the 401st might be one of the first units to enter Bologna, but on 20 April the battalion was transferred to IV Corps sector to work with the 1108th Group, in support of the 1st Armored Division. The following day, the battalion moved to Mount Moscoso on Highway #64. The day after the move, a Class 40, 60-foot, double-single Bailey bridge was built over a damaged bridge at Modena.
The companies were leap-frogging each other to keep up witht eh 1st Armored Division. On 23 April, the next day, a 180-foot, triple-single Bailey was built across the Panaro River near Modena. Two other Bailey bridges were installed the same day.
On 24 April, work began to "bulldoze down" the banks of the Po River at S. Benedetto. Float construction began at 1600 hours. All night long the work progressed, and at 1045 hours, 25 April. the first bridge across the Po River (the longest bridge ever built by the battalion) was officially opened. The next day, a 75-foot M-1 treadway bridge was constructed across the Mincio River. On 28 April, a 110 foot triple-single Bailey bridge was built at Montichiari.
Later, rain caused such a rise in the river that the original stone support upon which the bridge rested gave ay, and the bridge collapsed into the river bed. The fallen bridge was recovered with difficulty, then replaced with a 60-foot addition to insure its resting upon a solid base.
In the fast moving situation in the last half of April, there were several times when the battalion had groups of men very close to the front. Often it seemed that they would be surrounded and cut off from aid. The last two days of April found the 401st COmbat Battalion maintanining the main suppoy routes in IV Corps sector.
On 30 April, the 401st got word that it would return to the 19th Engineer Group Headquarters. The battalion crossed over to the II Corps sector by way of Verona, Padova, and Vicenza and bivouacked at Castelfranco. On the day of the surrender of German forces, the battalion built a 100-foot trestle treadway bridge across the swift-flowing Piave River, about midway between Feltre and Belluno.
402nd Engineer Combat Battalion
When the advance began on 16 april, the headquarters of the 402nd Battalion split into two sections, and forward command post moved to Bilbulomo. Also on 16 April, Companies "B" and "C" were assigned to support the 313th Engineer Battalion of the 88th Division. Company "A" worked on the net of roads between Highway #65 and # 6620, and on 24 April was at Poggio Rusco.
On 21 April, Company "B" began construction of two 110-foot spans of triple-single Bailey bridge across the Reno River near Praduro. which was completed two days later. On 22 April. the 402nd's support of the 34th Division was terminated, and Company "C" was switchd to the 91st Division.
Company "A". assisted by units of Companies "B" and "C". constructed an M-2 treadway bridge across the Po River about two miles east of Ostiglia on 25 April. Company "B" maintained the bridge the next two days, then went to support the 88th Division in its crossing of the Brenta River on the 28th. An M-1 trestle treadway bridge was built, which was damaged by a tank on 30 April, but ws promptly repaired. The bridge was on Highway #53 between Vicenza and Cittadella.
In the meantime, Company "A" had moved north to construct an M-1 treadway bridge across teh Adige River at Legano. WHen the construction was completed, the unit began to rock the approaches. This work continued until the next day , when Company "A" was relieved by Company "C". On the last day of the month both Company "C" and Company "A" movet to the town of Treviso.
In May, the 402nd Engineer Combat Battalion under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Donald S. Nero supported the 85th and 88th Divisions by making minor road repairs and maintaining the Brenta River bridge.