- Contributed by听
- cambsaction
- People in story:听
- Keith Ramsbottom, (Mother, sister and brother)
- Location of story:听
- Norwich, Norfolk
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A7942502
- Contributed on:听
- 21 December 2005
I was 7 when the war was declared ad we lived in Lowestoft at the time; but by 1940 there were many hit and run raid by single aircraft, with no chance of a warning. So my parents decided that we would move to my grandparents in Norwich. The day we moved the Blitz of Norwich started. We spent the next month getting up at Midnight and going across the road opposite where there were large underground shelters. Being young I was never frightened but once I was awake I would join my friends racing up and down the length of the shelter! I remember on one occasion going with some of my friends to the exit of the shelter and trying to get to the shelter next door, in between bombs.
The one and only time I was frightened, was one particular night when we did not have time to get to the shelter and we all went (Mother, Sister, Brother and Grandmother) to the cupboard under the stairs. We could hear a stick of bombs, each one getting nearer; but what frightened me was not the bombs but my Grandmother kneeling down and praying out loud. The nearest bomb blew out all the windows in the house. We had to move to my other Grandmother鈥檚, which then also got it鈥檚 windows blown out!
When going to school I used to enjoy picking up pieces of Shrapnel and bombs to get a collection. One gorgeous day the Americans came to the school, giving out boxes of sweets (we couldn鈥檛 get any). I got one box of sweets for being evacuated from Lowestoft to Norwich, and managed to get another box of sweets for being bombed out!! I eat one of the sweets by myself and shared the other one with the family, not telling them I got two!!!
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