大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War website by Sue Sutton on behalf of Marlene Hughes, the author and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

Mother, Father and I lived in an upstairs flat in Welbeck Avenue Plymouth - near North Road Station. I was about 3 so this story has been related to me form Mother.
Father was a Flour Miller with Hosken Trevithick and Polkinghorne situated on the Hoe. He had shiftwork to do and very often could not leave the mill until his relief came in and with the roads bombed, he sometimes could not get in so Dad very often worked 24/36 hours at a stretch. No phones so culd not contact or be contracted.

One evening he had to go in to the mill, on foot - about 1/2 hours walk - and left Mum and I on our own with intructions to go to the public shelter a way away. Alice the ladlady living downstaris didn't want to do this and Mum decided to stay with her in her own shelter in the garden. That night the public shelter was bombed with hundreds of people killed. Father heard about this from his relief and thought we were involved. How horrific it must have been to try and get home through all the rubble and bomb craters thinking he had lost us. I can well imagine the joy when he found we were ok but how sad he must have been with all the lost souls.

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