7. Roll calls were a long and deeply feared daily event
Every day began with a roll call, and all prisoners, sick included, were mustered where they could be examined by the SS guards and counts were taken. If it was raining they stood in the rain, if snowing their feet began to freeze due to the inadequacies of their shoes. Sick and weak prisoners found roll calls to be death sentences. Failure to stand erect throughout the roll call was enough to receive a beating from an SS guard, usually delivered with a truncheon. Dirty or torn clothing could draw SS wrath. Roll calls were often used to assemble the prisoners so they could witness prisoners being whipped for violations of camp rules.
Discrepancies in head counts between the Kapos and SS guards often led to roll calls lasting for hours as they were resolved. Often Kapos who were part of a discrepancy were relieved of their duties and punished by the SS who despised them, and then by fellow prisoners who hated the Kapos as well. Roll calls could also be extended at the whim of the camp commandant or duty officer, who would keep the prisoners at attention and exposed to the elements for reasons known only to themselves. If a prisoner wavered due to standing too long, he would receive a beating. Often SS guards ordered the Kapos to deliver the beatings, as a form of entertainment for the guards.