French residents of Normandy recall D-Day at Utah Beach

Janine Gazengel Lot

“We had the feeling we were going to die..the next shell is going to hit us and we’re going to die…We would have stayed in the house but it was crumbling all around us, all the plaster, all the windows crumbling and smashing. We couldn’t stay in the house anymore so we decided to move outside to a trench that belonged to another family and to be together there.”

Yves Osmont

“Of course the Germans were firing back and the duel was starting up between them and the American ships..We were right in the cross-fire and could hear everything.”

Cecile Pasquette Osmont

“We prayed all night.” It was shocking. Everything was moving in the house. The earth was shaking from all the shelling. We were right in the middle of the battle. We could hear the bullets passing everywhere.”

Henri Coepel

“They were doing some firing to support the troops inland..One could imagine the battle going on behind Utah Beach and on the Cotentin peninsula. The ships were aiming at different places because the paratroopers were asking for support.”