大象传媒

This story is taken from an interview with John Luke, and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions. The interviewer was Mark Jeffers, and the transcription was by Bruce Logan.
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Shortly after the war started the Army took over at first one petrol pump and then two, which left me with one pump from which to sell petrol. Two soldiers were billeted in the garage to man the pumps 24 hours a day for the convoys of army vehicles passing through the town. The soldiers slept on wooden platforms approx 12鈥� high topped with palliasses (canvas bags filled with straw), which if you overfilled you rolled off. The secret was to not overfill them and they were quite comfortable! (I know from experience in the Home Guard.) The garage wasn鈥檛 an ideal place to sleep. It was beside the river and I heard daily stories of rats running over the men as they slept. Convoys came through at all hour, maybe 50 trucks, motorcycles whatever, coming from the Larne boat all to be filled with petrol. Convoys of vehicles, (even Bren Gun carriers) were on the move at all times. The Royal Engineers had a large depot about half a mile from the garage down Railway Street. There were also Army vehicles on manoeuvres, training or transporting equipment. I remember a large tank on one occasion coming over Harryville Bridge, one track came off and it slewed round and knocked down a lamppost. It had to sit there blocking the road until the recovery men came and took it away.

When the threat of invasion came, the Army came to prepare all bridges for demolition. They came on a Sunday to put charges under Harryville Bridge. The garage had 3 large glass Esso signs on top of the front wall. The army had to use explosives to make holes in the stonework under the bridge and the 3 signs were blown off and landed at my feet as I stood at the door watching the operation.

I left McBurney鈥檚 and moved to Dickey & Pinkerton鈥檚 garage, one of the leading garages in the town who were agents for Austin Cars and Bedford Trucks. It was a large garage and again the Army commandeered one half of the workshop and did all the vehicle maintenance there. We did some maintenance to Home Guard trucks and motorcycles on our side, as well as the normal civilian garage work. Spare parts for cars were not available unless under permit. Even tyres were under permit. Those considered eligible could apply by permit for spares which, if you were lucky, could appear in 2-6 months time. The only local source of spare parts was Charlie Cushenan鈥檚 scrap yard on Warden Street where you might get what you needed from a smashed car. You might call it 鈥渕ake do and mend.鈥�

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