- Contributed by听
- loughton library
- People in story:听
- Mrs Jeoan P Netherclift
- Location of story:听
- Chigwell Essex
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A3353032
- Contributed on:听
- 01 December 2004
I was a little girl during the last war and, like many other children, had been evacuated for several years.
However, when there was a lull in the bombing of London, several of us came home to be with our parents once more. Mine lived in Gosford Gardens, near Clayhall Park.
One evening we were surprised to hear the air raid warning and anti-aircraft guns again and my parents decided that we should go down the garden to our Anderson shelter which we had not needed to use for some time.
As we left the house we heard the engine of a German bomber (even children could recognize that sound) but the noise was hesitant and spluttering and very loud - worse still, a bright light was advancing with it.The plane was on fire!
We ran to the shelter and reached it just as the bomber passed over the roof of our house.We felt the heat from the flames.
My father and mother dropped to the ground as my father pushed me into the shelter.
"Splash"! our shelter had filled with water during the wet winter: I was soaked!
The plane? It came down at Gants Hill, landing on the empty parade of shops just before the station.
No one was killed except the german pilot, but my father had a telling off from Mum about the state of our shelter!
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