a counter-attack towards mirgo pass, by two companies of the 2nd kar, had some success before it was forced back by italian attacks. the italians were close to positions from which they could cut off the defenders from their sole line of supply and the italian advantage in artillery meant that the defended localities could be picked off piecemeal. after four days, the defenders were tiring and there was no better position to retreat to; an attempt to hold berbara alone would be pointless. on 14 august, godwin-austen informed [[henry maitland wilson|henry wilson]], the [[general officer commanding|general officer commanding-in-chief]] (goc-in-c) [[egypt command|british troops in egypt]] of the situation, concluding that further resistance at tug argan would be futile and likely to result in the loss of the force. wavell had been called to london and arrived on 7 august but wilson kept him informed of events, signalling his decision to order the evacuation of the colony to london with a few minutes. wavell told churchill who said that it could not be helped, then wavell left to return to cairo. withdrawal would result in an estimated 70 percent of the force being saved but if necessary the defenders would fight on. when it was clear that the attack towards mirgo pass had failed, sufficient troops were left either to retrieve the situation or cover a withdrawal. early on 15 august, godwin-austen signalled his conclusions to wilson, who ordered godwin-austen to withdraw from the colony. godwin-austin planned a slow retirement to barkasan, about from berbera, then to nasiyeh, from the port. over three nights, civilians then troops would be embarked, the time taken being determined by the monsoon, which usually made it difficult to reach ships by boat at night and before midday.