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ABOUT 3000 people braved continuous rain for Warrnambool's mid-morning Anzac Day commemoration.
Participants and spectators showed their commitment by enduring the wet weather for about an hour before the clouds broke as the last of more than 100 wreaths were laid.
Marchers stretched for more than a block and were lead by 50 descendants of World War I veterans wearing their medals.
"Our discomfort was nothing compared with what some of the Diggers would have went through," one drenched spectator remarked.
A feature of this year's program was the inclusion of the famous message from Turkish leader Ataturk to the families of fallen soldiers. It was read in the mother tongue by Turkish-born Warrnambool resident Engin Torun and in English by Annabel Ziegeler.
As the crowd dispersed local musician Eric Read closed with Eric Bogle classic "And the band Played Waltzing Matilta".
pcollins@fairfaxmedia.com.au