Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive

Ilya Martha Kessler - November 1, 1982

Conditions in Auschwitz II

One day I, I said myself, I want to go to the bathroom. They took to the bathroom when they want. And I go to the bathroom. I don't care what going to happen. I couldn't understand. So, I went and they took the people to the crematorium. People couldn't go out. This was a night came a transport, people came. They took to the crematorium. People was crying, crying. And I went following the street, I didn't care what going to happen. Didn't care. I went to the bathroom, I came back. And then the block where I was ??? You know, then I was mad at and then I re... later realized she was good to me. She hit me. She said, "They could kill you."

This is the Blockälteste?

Yeah, Block... Yeah. She was feeling sorry for my... for me, because they could shoot me. You couldn't go. I, I couldn't understand. And after I was there a half a year. Oy, when they took us away from there, what they had and how ??? everything. It's terrible, it's terrible, but people was ??? It was running. They want to leave there. It was terrible, terrible. So, they... We didn't know... We never knew where they taking you. Or happen and they took you to uh, to cleaning and they give you dirty ??? they was all...

Lice?

Lice, yeah, all over, all. And you, you killed them because it's all... I mean, terrible thing. You can't tell what happened there exactly, because you should... People's hear what happened. You know, I... It's no war time...

Right.

...to say this. So then, they took us to the worker Lager and then last night. We didn't know where they taking, to kill you or to work.


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