大象传媒

Preliminary notes: I have skipped a number of entries in order to maintain those that are of interest to a general public. The Massart family lived in Brixton for some time where they experienced the intense bombing. They then moved to Morden, Surrey, to stay with Lilian鈥檚 sister, Ivy, and her husband Bert Lane, at 252, Lynmouth avenue, where the raids were no less intense.

13-10-1940
Sunday
Around 11.30 a.m., Alan, Bert鈥檚 son, asked if he and Loline could go up to the Golf Court to gather wood and play. They left and at 1 p.m. we heard the air raid warning. At 1.10 p.m. we heard a plane diving towards the ground. Two explosions followed, very close to where we lived. The house shuddered and doors open and closed.
Outside, we noticed smoke rising from the Golf Court. Ivy was pale as a ghost and on the verge of fainting, pointing towards the court. My wife cried and screamed 鈥淟oline .. Loline .. Loline!鈥�
Bert and I rushed in the direction of the court. At the corner of the road, I saw the children arriving, accompanied by an air raid Warden. Loline and Alan told us afterwards that they were in King鈥檚 Road when the bombs exploded and that the Warden had thrown them to the ground and then himself over them to protect the children. After the danger had passed he had accompanied them home.
During the night, the aerial activity intensified. From 7 p.m. onwards, planes were passing one after the other. We could hear the shells and explosions in the neighbourhood. It was one of the worst raids on London.
At Balham, a large bomb exploded in the middle of the road in front of the underground. The water pipes under the surface burst and flooded the station in a matter of seconds. The tube was packed with people, mainly women and children, who had sought refuge. Hundreds of people died in the water and mud..

The 25th of February, 1941, Jozef Massart entered the Belgian army as a volunteer and joined the administrative corps. His wife and chlren spent some time at Saudersfoot, Wales and then moved to number 7, Manor Gardens, Merton Park, Wimbledon

18-2-1944
Friday
German planes were all around. The A.A. firing continuously. Hundreds of firebombs fell opposite us. 鈥淣elson鈥檚 Hospital鈥� was hit. I put on my helmet and rushed to the scene. Opposite the hospital and in the surrounding roads about 30 houses were on fire. I ran up to the hospital to offer help. One of the nurses told me that all the patients had been evacuated to another wing and were safe. The patients who were less ill had been transported to the Film Studios opposite the hospital but immediately removed as a time bomb had been noticed. Firebombs were everywhere. The fire brigade was active but it was impossible to extinguish all the fires at the same time. I helped in removing furniture from the burning houses. I also helped the firemen carry the hoses up to the first floor of a burning home. I could hardly see and the smoke smothered me. People were carrying pails of water to extinguish the flames. Nobody complained and everyone remained incredibly calm. One of the neighbours, dressed in pyjamas and slippers was climbing up a ladder and throwing water on the flames as if it were the most normal thing in the world. It was bitterly cold but he didn鈥檛 seem to mind at all! People did not seem to realise the dangers they faced: collapsing roofs, falling and burning logs. Not to mention the time bomb that could explode at any minute! At 4.15 a.m. the fire was contained and I returned home smelling like a smoked herring!

16-6-1944
Vendredi
They told me at the office why the air raid warning lasted so long last night. Hitler has started using his secret weapon: the V1. It appears to be a bomb with wings in the shape of a small plane that is propelled by rockets. The weight is estimated at one ton. The emplacements of the rockets are mainly situated on the French coast in the vicinity of Calais. London will most likely be the main target, once more.
The same evening, we were awakened at 4 a.m. by the loud noise of an approaching plane. I jumped out of bed and from the window, I saw a sort of plane with its tail on fire. Shells were bursting all around. A loud crashing sound followed. My wife jumped on top of Loline and I covered Raymond. The windows shattered and plaster detached from the ceiling. Then .. an enormous explosion! This was our first encounter with the V1 and there were many more to come.

Many descriptions of the attacks by V1 and V2 bombs follow. The final entry is the following:

8-5-1945
Tuesday
At 3 p.m., Churchill announces officially that Doenitz and Stalin have signed the capitulation, yesterday, May 7th at 2.41 a.m. The war in Europe is over! No more V1 and V2! We can finally tell our family in Belgium that we have survived.
On November 7th, 1943, I had foreseen the end of the war on May 18th 1944. Although I was wrong by one year, my guess was not that bad at all!

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