Note 7 — Chapter XXII · Leyte Is Liberated

The new area was a plateau with an elevation of about 1,200 feet, heavily forested and having rocky eastern and western slopes that made it “a natural fortress.” From it one could command a view of Ormoc Valley to the east and the Camotes Sea and Cebu to the west. There were a few Filipino huts, and cultivated fields and coconut groves, interspersed with salt beds, lay along the beach. The area “was admirably suited for an extended period of defensive action.”7 General Suzuki ordered the units of the 35th Army that were retreating westward to repair to the vicinity of the new base of operations.