With the advent of the morning the Germans could no longer count on surprise and darkness. Soviet countermeasures became more obvious, although they could not be described as vigorous. Hahl recalled that artillery fire was directed toward the fleeing German soldiers, and some T-34s also went into action. The latter was a particularly serious threat, as the Germans hardly possessed any antitank weapons. German casualties rose, and Hahl was hit in the back by splinters from a shell fired from a T-34. He was fortunate that the wound was slight, as he too saw how wagons with wounded were rolled over by the T-34 tanks. Without being particularly hampered by the wound, Hahl continued toward a small forest, where he found remnants of his company. Suddenly a small Soviet infantry force appeared only 30 meters from Hahl’s company. Without much hesitation Hahl’s men stormed forward and got the upper hand in a brief but bitter close combat.710
Only a small distance remained before Hahl reached the Gniloi Tikich River, where he, like so many other German soldiers found that there was no bridge or any other means of crossing. The cold and swift water appeared ominous; however, fire from a T-34 on a crest about 500 meters away shattered any doubts about the need to cross as quickly as possible, even as it made searching for a suitable crossing place more difficult. With his company dispersed and out of control, Hahl quickly decided to swim, despite the fact that the temperature in the air was almost -10°C. He jumped into the water and swam as quickly as he could. His uniform became soaked and heavy, threatening to pull him down under the current. Despite wet clothes, cold water, and the rushing current Hahl made it to the bank on the other side, where he briefly recovered in the brushwood.711
Together with an officer from the Germania Regiment, who had crossed the Gniloi Tikich just after him, Hahl began to walk toward Lisyanka. On the southern side of the river the threat from Soviet units was much weaker, and the two walked until they saw a German tank next to a cottage. As they approached, Hahl and the officer noticed that the commander in the turret of the tank looked curiously at them. Somewhat hesitantly they asked him: “Have we got out?” Cheerfully the tank commander said “Yes.” Hahl and the other officer fell into each other’s arms. It was just as well. Apart from three rounds left in his machine pistol and one hand grenade, Hahl was unarmed.712
Two days later Hahl wrote a short letter to his parents:
Dear parents! For weeks I have not been able to write to you, as all communications to the rest of the world were severed. Two days ago we broke out of the cauldron. We had to endure many hardships and many times the situation was not rosy. However, everything is well now. I was wounded a fifth time during the breakout, but made it anyway. I will send you more later.713
Another wounded soldier of the SS-Wiking Division was Otto Brieger. He served in the 11th Battery of the artillery regiment and had previously injured his foot, which of course boded ill for his chances of getting out of the pocket. He recalled:
In the morning it all began. As we could not bring our gun along, it was destroyed. I was offered to accompany a tank during the breakout. I climbed up but had no positive feelings about it. After travelling for a few hundred meters a half-track passed by and I swiftly moved to it. However, we did not come far before the vehicle got stuck in a muddy valley. The vehicle tried to get up, but slid down again. We had no choice but to abandon it and continue on our own. After about a kilometer we came across SS-Major Dorr, who had assembled a small battle group. We accompanied the group, but as I was hampered by my wounded foot I was soon alone. When I reached a crest I did no longer see the other men. I reached a covering forest. All the time, groups of men came walking in bunches, but due to my slowness I soon found myself alone again. Or Not! There was a Russian position ahead and it had to be overcome. In this attack I joined a group led by SS-Captain Degrelle. I threw my last hand grenade and fired all the remaining ammunition.
Soon I was alone again and had reached the end of the forest. Suddenly there was machine gun fire from the right. I could see the bullets striking the ground to the left of me. No doubt the fire was aimed at me, but I was so tired I just looked at the impacts as if I were a remote observer. Anyhow, I had the fortune to get away unharmed. Thereafter I ran a fairly long distance until I saw a straw stack covering a tank. Briefly I was filled with fear, but then I realised it was a German tank. I had got through.714
The units who made up the rear guard had a more difficult task, since the element of surprise was lost by the time they began to move west. Daylight also increased the dangers from Soviet artillery and armor. Furthermore, while it could be hoped that the Soviet soldiers would be confused during the initial phase of the breakout, as it progressed it was likely that the German soldiers themselves would become muddled.
General Stemmermann had decided that the 57th and 88th Divisions would provide most of the rear guard. The 88th Division was on the northern corner of the pocket, giving Count von Rittberg’s division the longest distance to the spearheads of the III Panzer Corps. This division would have to set off later than those of the first echelon.
However, it was envisaged that soldiers who were not needed to man the rear defenses could join other units which began the breakout earlier. It is unclear how successful this plan was, as traffic jams caused delays among the units closer to the western edge of the pocket.715
The breakout began at 23.00hrs, but already on the evening of 16 February some elements of 88th Division had begun to pull back from the northeastern perimeter of the cauldron. At 17.00hrs the Division-Gruppen 323 and 332 pulled back and moved into Shenderovka. During the night the 88th Division held its positions, but at 05.15hrs on 17 February it received orders from Stemmermann to begin its breakout.716
As dawn provided some visibility, the 88th began to move, while Soviet units fired into the division’s northern flank. In front of the division there was practically no resistance, probably because it followed other German units. At the road between Dzhurzhentsy and Pochapintsy the lead elements of 88th Division encountered the same Soviet tank screen as had obstructed so many German units earlier. The troops of 88th Division also found the forest south of hill 239.0 held by Soviet troops. However, hastily collected troops from the 88th attacked the Soviet defenses in the forest, broke through, and reached Lisyanka. Not all soldiers of 88th Division were aware of the events in the forest. Instead they continued south and reached the Gniloi Tikich River. The troops set about constructing a crossing, but the work was made difficult by the fire from Soviet tanks and antitank guns. A brief panic broke out, but calm was soon restored and footbridges were built, which even allowed the wounded to cross the river.717
Thus the lead elements of the 88th Division were successful, but more problems were encountered by the rearward parts. At the western edge of Shenderovka, traffic jams hampered the breakout. There was only one bridge available at the exit of the village, and it was not strong enough for heavy vehicles. These should already have been destroyed but, contrary to orders, several vehicles had been driven toward the bridge. When they could not cross, the bridge was blocked and the heavy equipment had to be left at Shenderovka.718