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The retreat of Dmitrieff's army was in an easterly direction along Tarnow, Pilzno, Dembica, Rzeszow, and Lancut to Przevorsk on the San; from the region of Gorlice and Ciezkovice along Biecz, Jaslo, Frysztak, Krosno to Dynow, Dubiecko, and Sanok, the latter also on the San.
By pushing on to Dembica and Rzeszow, along which route assistance could otherwise have been sent to the Russians, Von Mackensen opened a wide triangle into Western Galicia, by drawing an almost horizontal line from Gorlice to Radymno, between Jaroslav and Przemysl, and from there perpendicular down to the Uzsok Pass.
Between May 11-12, 1915, the Germanic troops occupied the districts of Sendziszow, Rzeszow, Dynow, Sanok, Lisko, Lancut, and Dubiecko. Przevorsk was deserted by the Russians on the 13th. The Seventh Russian Railway Battalion, under Captain Ratloff, brought up the rear of the retreat to the Dembica-Jaroslav line.
The Russian defense in the Vistok Valley collapsed on May 10, 1915; the German center had almost arrived within striking distance of the important railway line from Tarnow via Dembica and Rzeszow to Jaroslav north of Przemysl. At Sanok the battered remnants of the Russian troops who had escaped from the passes maintained themselves with the greatest difficulty.
From Rzeszow onward this battalion were employed in destroying stations, plants, tunnels, culverts, rolling stock, and railway bridges, to hamper as much as possible the German advance. It took the Austro-Hungarian engineers between two and three weeks to repair the road and put it into sufficient working order to transport their heavy siege artillery.