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y the Array for the construction of ooastal fortifications undersupervision of Army Engineers.44* Russia.The situation in Russia was quite different. Not only dideverything have to be "built from the ground up, but there wasalso the constant need of protection from guerillas. Above all,the military situation was kept fluid, by the necessity ofreckoning with the Russian counter-offensives. Relations betweenWehrmacht and the OT were, therefore, much more direct than theywere in the West. On the 23 July 1942, for example, the chief OTliaison Officer to Array Group A ordered a preliminary surveydetachment of the Brtickenbauleitung Ertl (Bridge ConstructionSector Ertl) to make a report on the construction site for a bridgewhich was to span the River Don at ROSTOV. The survey wasstarted on the 25th, while the site was still within range ofRussian artillery fire. On the 30th presumably after the surveygroup had turned in their report, orders for the actual constructioncame through from the General of Engineers, Army Level. Theconstruction itself was then left in the hands of the OT BridgeConstruction Sector Ertl.ko•Balkans.Exploitation of the bismuth, manganese, antimony, molybdenum,chromium and bauxite mines in the Balkans was of great strategicimportance to Germany. It was, therefore, the Generalbevolmftchtigterfflr die Wirtchaft (Plenipotentiary General for Industry) inBELGRADE who made the initial request for the construction of roadsto facilitate exploitation on a large scale. The channels on thisoccasion were as follows. The Plenipotentiary for Industry inBELGRADE made out his report to BERLIN, whenoe it was forwardedthrough Army channels to the Commanding General, South East, whoapproved it and finally it was forwarded to OTHQ in BELGRADE.46. Germapy»The first evidence of organized OT activity on a considerablesoale in Germany was the creation of Einsatz Ruhrgebiet inMay 1943* later expanded to an Einsatzgruppe. The Ruhr Valley wasdeclared an emergency area as a result of the Allied air raidswhich had destroyed among others theMOHNE Dam. At that time theOT was only part of this reconstruction scheme, which wasdirected by Dipl. Ing.SANDER in a dual oapacity. His regularpost was that of Baubevollmfichtigte des Reichs Ministers SPEERim Bezirk der Bflstungsinspektion VI (ConstructionPlenipotentiary of Reich Minister SPEER within the distriot ofArmament Inspectorate VI, see IB19)» On 1 May 1943 he was giventhe additional task of repairing the damage oaused in the RuhrValley, in connection with which he was appointedBaubeauftragter Ruhr des Generalbevollma'ohtigten Bau (ConstructionDeputy for the Ruhr of the Plenipotentiary General forConstruction), that is to say, of SPEER 1 s representative, at thattime STOBBE-DETHLEFFSEN* In the latter oapacity he was Chief ofthe special SFEER staff for the Ruhr. The members of* this staffwere the OT Chief of Einsatz Ruhrgebiet, the chief of ArmamentInspectorate VI and all Gauleiter whose Gaue totally orpartially fell within the Ruhr Valley*To list OT's activities in Germany at the present time wouldbe equivalent to listing all repair and construction of any typewhatsoever now being undertaken .in the Reioh. Four main types ofconstruction will be named in IIC48(xii). For the performance ofits present tasks, the OT has absorbed all previously oivil andofficial agencies in the Reich subordinated to Amt Bau with whichconstruction Plenipotentiary SATCDER was connected. The subject of- 44 ­