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Attack on The Trinity House Lighthouse at Berry Head.

This story was submitted to the People's War site by Paul Trainer of Torbay Library Services on behalf of Eric Brian Barnes and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's Terms and Conditions.

I started work in 1942 at the end of July for an electrical firm, A J Pope. My first job was to look after batteries, lead acid cells. We did civilian work and work for the Admiralty and Coast Guard and very often had to take batteries out to Berry Head Coast Guard, often late afternoon or early morning — the batteries were for signalling. I had to take two batteries out, early morning at the beginning of October and as I got through the gates of the Berry Head Fort, pushing my bike I heard aircraft. I looked up and saw two Messershcmidt 109 aircraft overhead — coming straight for me. One veered off to the right and went down over the cliffs and the other started to shoot at the coast guard station where I was. I dropped my bike and jumped into the bushes. Most of the bullets hit the building to the left of the coastguard station. After he had fired a couple of bursts he joined the other plane and flew off. I picked myself and my bike up. One of the batteries had lost some acid but I put the stopper back in and wiped up the acid and took them to the station. The two coast guards and the ligthhouse keeper, Mr Bawden, were white as a sheet and they were surprised to see me and asked if I had seen the plane. I told them there were actually two planes.

The battery that had leaked did not last long and I was ticked off by the boss!

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