大象传媒

When you first went into your preliminary training school, and then into hospital 鈥� you were in a set in, and you remained in that set throughout; so lists went up around the hospital went up around the hospital saying where you were to go if the sirens sounded.

If you were on day duty, you only left a skeleton staff on the ward. We had great big wooden shutters, and the junior nurse who was left on the ward used to have to fly around with a pole and put all these shutters up. We also had these enamel washing bowls, and the idea was that you鈥檇 put them on the lockers, and if the bombs were falling you had to hold them over the patients heads. I don鈥檛 think it would have given them much protection, it was more psychological.

That was the junior nurse鈥檚 job, and the sister and staff nurse, stayed on the ward. I don鈥檛 have any memories of the patients ever being too perturbed really. I suppose it was war time, and everybody just got used to it.

You were allocated these areas, and you had to go to these different areas and wait until the all clear sounded. We didn鈥檛 have many air raids during the day time: it was chiefly night time, and the reason was they were heading for Crewe because it was a station where people would converge, so they usually passed over Stoke on Trent.

We did have these sirens every night- they usually went off at about half past nine. You could almost set your clock by them. We were off duty at nine o鈥� clock, and we were desperate to get off and get up to our rooms and have a wash or a bath 鈥� (we were only allowed five inches of water in the bath 鈥� nobody ever came to check it but I suppose we were very loyal.) But we were desperate to have a wash, but sometimes you didn鈥檛 make it - if you were kept on the ward.

After you heard the sirens you鈥檇 have to go down to the shelters, and the shelters were right opposite the nurses鈥� home. Two home sisters would be there, and they鈥檇 put planks along as seats, and you鈥檇 sit there, and then usually the all-clear would go at around two or three o鈥檆lock in the morning 鈥� perhaps a bit later. We鈥檇 then gather up our bits and pieces, and go off to our rooms, and get washed and changed and go on duty again.

The fact that you鈥檇 been down in the shelters didn鈥檛 really make much difference really- nobody said are you tired 鈥� it was accepted. We still did our nursing duties and kept exactly to the times were supposed to. We had lectures to go to, and exams too, the air raids didn鈥檛 change those either.

As you became more senior the places you were sent to changed. One of the places I was sent to was under the stairs on a biscuit mattress. I had to share it with one other nurse, and we topped and tailed on it.

I was far more afraid of the cockroaches than I was of the bombs!

Another place I was allocated was right down through the hospital, and right down the staircase and go right down into the bottom part of the hospital and we had to crawl along a passage under these huge water pipes until we reached a huge cellar place. I used to be terrified - I remember saying to one of my friends 鈥淗ey, what will happen if one of these pipes bursts?鈥� She replied 鈥淧at, don鈥檛 worry you鈥檒l just be drowned, but before that you鈥檒l be scalded鈥�. I said 鈥淭hank you very much!鈥�

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Becky Barugh of the 大象传媒 Radio Shropshire CSV Action Desk on behalf of Patricia Davies and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

See more of Pat's stories:

• 1) I suppose it was inevitable鈥�
• 2) Getting used to being on the wards
• 3) The unchanging rota
• 4) Othopaedic Wards
• 5) The Miners
• 6) Keeping coffee warm in the sterilizer
• 7) Mouth gags and tongue clips
• 8) Dear Flower Girl
• 9) Theatres
• 10) The Nurse鈥檚 Home
• 11) The 鈥楪uinea Pig Club鈥�
• 12) Mice in the washing and other tricks
• 14) Extra Work
• 15) Shake and Shake鈥�
• 16) Little Nurse
• 17) A lot of things were introduced during the War
• 18) Only two nights off
• 19) Making and Breaking
• 20) My little bucket and I
• My visit to post-War Germany

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