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My Experiences as a Civil Defence Messenger

Roy Jamieson

Newmarket, Suffolk

I joined the ARP, as it was then known, in Newmarket, in late 1939, as a Boy Scout Messenger whilst a pupil at Newmarket Grammar School. The general attitude towards the ARP at that time was rather cynical.

I can always remember the first time I did my first night duty, I was told to bring two blankets and a pillow with me, however being in the Scouts I had a sleeping bag. When I arrived at 21.00 (9.00pm) I found it in a state of excitement; people running here and there and seeming to me as if there 鈥渨as much ado about nothing鈥�. To my surprise I discovered that a Yellow Alert had been sounded, that is to say that enemy aircraft were near at hand. Gradually everything died down and peace was restored, only to start again when the 鈥淲hite鈥� or 鈥淎ll Clear鈥� came through.

Eighteen months later the town had its very own Blitz and the C.D. (Civil Defence) services were given a real test. On 18th February 1941, Market Day, whilst in class, I well remember the Air Raid Siren sounding, as the rest of the school took shelter, many under the metal staircase, I collected my cycle and rode to the Report Centre. I had not been there very long before we heard the familiar sound of an enemy aircraft approaching and then explosions, a number of us went into one of the back rooms to see if we could see anything, there we could see clouds of smoke and immediately thought the school had been hit. Luckily we were to learn later that this was not so. However we soon learned that the High Street had been very seriously damaged and that there were a large number of casualties. It became obvious that ten H.E. Bombs had been dropped along one side of the High Street and one of the bombs had demolished the telephone exchange, which meant that communication with the outside world had been cut off.

In those days we had no equipment other than our Civil Defence armbands. There were two steel helmets at the Report Centre which we had to share. A messenger was not allowed to go out unless he was wearing a 鈥渢in hat鈥�; consequently if a message had to be taken out the Messenger had to wait until another Messenger came in before he could go out to deliver the message.

Later that evening we were informed that emergency telephone lines had been established between the 鈥渙utside world鈥� from Cambridge to a temporary Report Centre which was set up at the then Doric Cinema and to Kentford from Bury St. Edmunds. It was then that we Messengers did what we had joined for. For the next three days and nights we were on duty ready to take out any messages. For that time 75 per cent of us did not go to bed at all. During those three days and nights on duty we only went home for meals and tried to get some rest and sleep on the large sofa like seats in the foyer. The Cinema remained open for business after the first night.

The first night I was required to deliver a message to the temporary mortuary and can still remember, after all these years, seeing the bodies laid out in the room.

The following night there was an Alert and we Messengers were required to go around to the various points where Air Raid Sirens were situated and notify the persons in charge to sound them. When the All Clear was received we then had to go and tell them to sound the All Clear. Luckily the third night was Alert free and we were able to get some rest.
On the fourth day telephone connections were established and we were no longer required to be on duty. A couple of nights later I was back on duty at the Report Centre and an Alert was sounded; thankfully it turned out to be a very quiet night.

Strangely, within a few days of the above events we received a consignment of steel helmets. I further recall being called out one Sunday morning and, along with other Messengers, being taken in an Army ambulance to a village near Newmarket. There we were told we would be searching for Butterfly anti personnel bombs which it was suspected had been dropped the previous night. We were give very strict instructions that in the event of any being found we were not to touch them but to call out and an Army Bomb Disposal person would come and deal with it. None were found and finally at about 3.00pm we were called off and taken back to Newmarket to some very relieved parents.

Over the ensuing years many changes took place, we were all issued with navy blue battle dress and various other pieces of equipment. We even had three motor cycles issued in 1943 and I learnt to ride one and became a Dispatch Rider.

I well remember those traumatic and tragic days, once I slept on a very uncomfortable stretcher nearly frozen stiff, and can still feel myself being dragged out of bed at two in the morning in stormy weather to take a message to the other side of town. For a youngster it was a most memorable and exciting time but only a 鈥渇ill in鈥� until I later went into the Navy.

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