Explosion near De Blesse

On 12 April, the Royal Canadian Dragoons reconnaissance regiment had crossed the Drents-Frisian border near Noordwolde. They then turned to Vinkega. Near Steggerda, they had an encounter with German troops. By coincidence, Canadian Staghound armoured cars from Vinkega and a number of German vehicles appeared at the Turfhoek at almost the same time. There was chaos among the German troops. They knew the Canadians were approaching, but had little intelligence on their strength and position. The battle at Steggerda was over quickly. 17-year-old Rinse de Vries saw it happen:  
 
"The German group was made up of a large green bus, a truck loaded with ammunition, a luxury car and some motorbikes [...] The fight was short but fierce. The truck carrying ammunition exploded, the bus burnt out." 
 
On the bus, there were soldiers who had previously blown up an ammunition depot in De Eese. At least one German soldier on the bus was killed. 

After this, the Dragoons drove on to Peperga and towards De Blesse. Again, the Canadians caught sight of a group of Germans. There was a column of German trucks on the road from Willemsoord. After the Dragoons opened fire, most of the trucks managed to escape southwards. For unclear reasons, some trucks had also been left behind. They had taken covert positions under a row of trees. 

In the early afternoon, however, they were discovered by Allied fighters. Henk Wielinga, who went into hiding in the village to escape forced labour, witnessed what happened next: 

"And yes, there the low-flying machines came shooting over me towards the three cars. It was a terrifying experience! The cars had transformed into a sea of flames and a car also exploded at that time. The explosion had major consequences for the houses in the village, including our house. 

There were a number of wounded and since my mother was a district nurse and we managed the Green Cross, I went to get a stretcher. My mother went to the attic, but the explosions caused her to fall through the attic hatch - resulting in a concussion and some injuries." 

The explosion had been so powerful that three houses on Konijnenbergen were completely destroyed. Several trees had snapped like matchsticks, and there was damage to other houses in the immediate vicinity. Despite the huge blast, not all ammunition had been destroyed. When the remains were being cleared afterwards, people still got minor injuries due to carelessness.