大象传媒

HEREFORD MESSSENGER SERVICE

Shortly after war was declared on the September 3rd. 1939, the older Boy Scouts (I was just 15 years of age) were encouraged to become bicycle messengers to work with the Air Raid Precautions and Civil Defence organisations.

I volunteered and was allocated to the C.D. Headquarters which was in the old prison cells underneath the stone built Police Headquarters in Gaol Street, Hereford. The walls between the cells are about 2 feet thick.

Our duty was to know the roads, alleyways and shortcuts in City like the back of our hand so that we could get messages 鈥� verbal or written 鈥� to their destinations as quickly as possible round any obstructions. We also had to know the access points to a piped stream which flowed from the west by the north and emptied into the Castle Pool, which had been part of the castle moat, in the south east of the City. The reason for us to know this was so that we could meet fire engine crews at the edge of the City and guide them to the nearest access point to their incident.

Training was also given to know how to detect, identify and protect ourselves in the event of a gas attack.

We wore our Boy Scouts uniform topped by a steel helmet painted black with a large white 鈥楳鈥� at the front. This was worn on all training exercises normally held at the week-ends during the day, occasionally at night. All vehicle lights, including bicycle lights, had to have the top half of the glass painted black so that light only shone from the lower half.There was not any street lighting, illuminated signs or shop window lighting. Every building did not have to show a chink of light from its windows and doors

There was a regular rota for overnight duty. We remained fully dressed and slept on bunk beds in the old prison cells. The control room, just along a stone floored corridor, was manned 24 hours a day.

About 06.00hours on the 27th July, 1942 the air raid siren sounded and a lone German bomber flew low over Hereford and aimed 2 x 250lb. high explosive bombs at the ammunition factory about one and a half miles to the south east of the City. One bomb exploded within the factory killing 19 workers and injuring many more. The other bomb did a 鈥渄ucks and drakes鈥� (bounced) then exploded demolishing a house outside the factory grounds. The house was full of members of a family gathering, including a soldier on leave. All were killed except the 16 year old son who did as his dad had told him, 鈥淚f the siren sounds get under the stairs鈥�

When the siren sounded I was in bed at home. Dressing quickly I reported to the C.D.H.Q. Two of us were sent to the scene of the incident. On arrival we saw a great pile of rubble.

The Warden in charge told us that everyone had been killed except one person. He gave us the job of searching the orchard attached to the house for any personal belongings. As an after thought he added 鈥淵ou may come across a man鈥檚 head鈥�. We found several personal items and handed them to the warden.
I was late for work that day.

Later, at the control centre, we were told that the bomber had been shot down by Spitfire fighter planes near Gloucester. Many years later there was a newspaper report that the pilot of the bomber had survived and had talked of the incident.

I continued these duties and Air Training Corps training until being called up for R.A.F. aircrew training.

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