大象传媒

Several people have wanted to get some details regarding the raid on Cowes on the night on the 4th/5th May 1942.
Let me tell you my story.
I was 15 years plus when war broke out in 1939. My father
, who incidentally was awarded a D.C.M. in the 1914/18 war.
was employed as a prison officer at Parkhurst Prison Although being too young for military service I was allowed to enter the A.F.S as a messenger boy and as time went by I graduated into a fully fledged Fire Fighter Part time of course because I still had my day job.
In those days the part timers had a post to report too when rhe air raid sirens were sounded. My post was at a place behind the Stag Inn at Parkhurst, and was manned by five or more part timers. Our Fire Engine consisted of an old Buick car and towed a trailer pump
On the night of the 4th/ 5th May Waves of aircraft flew in and attacked the area. The first wave dropped fire bombs but most were off target and set fire to Parkhurst forest
and thousands of them fell into marshy fields, failed to explode and looked like seagulls that had settled down for the night
The next wave dropped flares that lit up the target like day. We set off to cowes with our old buick, but were held up by an enormous crater, large enough to put a double dekker bus in. \a similar sized bomb had dropprd into Cowes cemetery, the result of which defies explanation. However after taking some rather desperate detours we did manage to make our way to Cowes Headquaters.
I and another chap were sent to J.S.Whites shipyard to replace a couple of casualties
and to try to contain fires in a paint shop there. The paint shop was on a jetty and tied up to the jetty was the Polish Destroyer Blyscaweca firing all guns at the bombers above.I believe that the quwstion has been asked about Polish crewmen staying here after the war. I know of only one but he marrued and then moved to Canada, but I have forgotten his name
P.S.
But that was not the last I saw of Blyscawica
I eventually was called up, and at first was sent down the mines as a BEVIN Boy but was invalided out due to continuos nose bleeds. I then Joined the Navy, posted to a Tribal Class Destroyer H.M.S. Tartar. She led the 10th Destroyer Flotilla and Blyscawica was part of that Flotilla

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