Frieda Kliger

“[...] We, um… my… not close family, but my people, my friend with his family, they were metal workers. They were electricians. They knew a lot of… professions in building and in electricity. And they were very smart, they saw that there was no other way, just they had to hide. They have to hide They couldn’t go out and fight. My friend who was then 21 years old and he wanted to go and to be with the fighters, or to go away to the woods and be a partisan. Again, I… I just couldn’t leave my sister Guta and Lutek and I bagged them, I said ‘look, Heniek, you go wherever you feel you have to go. And if the– we will be in two sides of the world, but the world would end and we will be together’. He didn’t– said heis not going alone. And he… he… didn’t go to the… places where he really wanted to go..He had a terrific will of… to leave. And I promised him he will leave no matter what. So they build this bunker. The bunker is a hiding place, under their factory. They moved their factory from the original place where they had it, and they moved it to another– they had to have permission from the Germans that they will work for the Germans, and the Germans who agreed to make this factory, they did for themselves because they were… they were supposed to go to the war, the… not everybody wanted to fight, to go to the war and get killed, so they rather help Jews to build up a factory and to work for them. So they brought all their machines, all their equipments, and they build up a machine– a factory. Underneath of one machine, they made an opening, very discreet, nobody will know how to get them, and its so artistic, it was artistic built. And they need– they– they– digged down until they found water. And they build around a well. So, we would have water, even if they close up the water from the whole town. They build in electricity, independent electricity, not from the whole city. They prepared enough food, so they organized with his family, pharmacist, and with another man who was a specialist, how much calories-- and how much calories such and such amount of people can live at least two years, so they accumulate dry food and conserves and all kind of things that could stay in a– and, when time comes, we will be able to go and hiding.”

Underneath of one machine, they made an opening, very discreet, nobody will know how to get them, and its so artistic, it was artistic built. And they need– they– they– digged down until they found water. And they build around a well. So, we would have water, even if they close up the water from the whole town. They build in electricity, independent electricity, not from the whole city. They prepared enough food, so they organized with his family, pharmacist, and with another man who was a specialist, how much calories-- and how much calories such and such amount of people can live at least two years, so they accumulate dry food and conserves and all kind of things that could stay in a– and, when time comes, we will be able to go and hiding.

“[...] When they came back, the Banders [family name], they decided that no more this kind of living, we have to hide ourselves. And they started to work on a bunker. So they worked, September, October, November, December. In January 18, January 18 it was a little Aktion in Warsaw, because some of the underground people killed SS man. So they made an Aktion for three days. For three days they were killing Jews left and right, so the bunker was almost ready. Everybody went down and I… I resist I said I am not going. And I remained in the house which was in Rehov Kopietzka street, on the third floor we had this apartment. I didn’t go there. And it was finished but they were still working out, they made… shelves, then we could use it as sleeping places. There was a lot of work to do around, to build a place like that where supposed to be 22 people. But we wind up with 35 people inside. And they continue working, they build also for other people, because they… people who knew how to do it. This was going on until the 19 of April, when the uprising broke out [...]”

[bunker was burning down, they escaped outside]

“But this Lazer Bander, this father of this Heniek, this oldest man, he said he’s not moving from here. He build it with his own hands, and he… found a… a… a faucet where is water. With a one pail, he was carrying this water, and he spilled on the fire. You know, it was a scene that only a great artist would be able to paint. Flames, and this man with the.. Like.. a big hat, carrying a pail of water, against fire which goes up to the sky. But ali of us decided that we should look again, we should go on and leave, so we should look some place to hide again. He said - you go. He, what he did when the fire finally died out, he found himself a place in the well. There was the coolest place, so he told us that he would sit there, it was like a..ladder. And he would sit there until everything is– and you couldn’t halp him, you couldn’t talk to him. ‘I am not leaving, everybody should go’ and we were– done this with him. [...]”

“[...] and we walked, walked until we found again a... Basement, some kind of a basement, which was once a factory of batteries and stuff like this. So we all, somehow pushed in, all of us. And again they started to work like ants. Everybody looked for stones, for… whatever it was on hand to build up a wall, to close up. So… we were, again, closed up, and we were all together. But again, we started to feel that we don’t have air enough… um… so... This was the day, very hard, very difficult. And… at night we must go away, we must go out from there because we feel it’s very… congested, very… too small place for all of us.[...]”