大象传媒

I was just five years old at the commencement of WW2 but, despite this very young age I still have vivid memories of some of the action that took place over the following five to six years or so,. I have recently submitted two of my stories, NEAR MISS 1&2 to the Editor.

Because of our close proximity to Liverpool and Birkenhead, we are as the 'Crow Flies' only approximately 12 miles away, which means of course that during many of the Air Raids directed upon Liverpool and Birkenhead we, from our home across the Dee Estury, were able to see fires and hear the explosions as we dared to leave the comparitive safety of our 'Table Shelter'. Apart from hearing the raids we could also see the Search Lights in operation as they tried to seek out the Enemy Bombers as they passed over the City.During the day however we could also see the Barrage Balloons there to 'protect' the city from low level air attacks by the enemy.

With regard to Search Lights, there was a battery of these (I am not too certain how many) located less than half a mile from my home and which, during the period they were in operation during the war, my parents had to ensure that on one day each week, a hot bath was made available for one of the soldiers stationed at the Search Light Battery, I am again not sure whether or not this was compulsory or volenteered by my parents.

As you will read from my two stories which I mentioned earlier, our coast line was not free from enemy action which, apart from my own experiences of 'Near Misses' resulted, following an air raid, in the unfortunate deaths of one family little under two miles from my home.

One can only speculate as to why non strategic targets , such as the North Wales coast were bombed, several theories emerged at the time, the Bombers, having attacked such places as Liverpool and Birkenhead were either returning via North Wales coast in order to carry out a further wave of bombing along the Mersey, or alternatively they were returning to their base and were simply dropping their bombs in order to lighten their aircraft load whilst under attack from our fighter planes, other theories were that prior to the war a German Company, under the name of Glanstoff who were, as I was informed, the original owners of Aber Works Flint, were also concidered a target, the most bizarre story of the time was quoted as being caused by the owner of our local 'chippy' who, as an ex German patriot was apparently, with the aid of a flashlight, 'sending signals' to the Luftwaffe and guiding them to their specific targets. I do believe however that the most plausable reason for the bombing was told to me by a former Luftwaffe Recognisance Airman. During my apprenticeship between 1949-1955 when I worked alongside him, I did ask his interpretation of what might have been the reason for bombing non stategic targets such as the North Wales coast, he responded by telling me that, as a person who had responsibility for this recognisance,it was possible that the Pilot and Navigator along with the equipment of the time , might have mistaken the North Wales Coast for the more strategic targets of Liverpool and Birkenhead. I am sure we will never know.

I conclude my story with the evening / morning of 8th and 9th May 1941. On that late evening of the 8th May, my mother and I with a few neighbours, as I seem to remember were, following an air raid siren alert seeking protection under our steel 'Table Shelter'. My father who had served in WW1 was, during the war, serving as an Air Raid Warden. As records now indicate, at 0140 Hrs on the morning of the 9th May 1941, when at that time my father was on duty in our area, he banged our front door and shouted out for us to come and 'see this' I will never forget what he was drawing our attention to, as directly in front of our home, approximately half a mile away was a HEINKEL 111 P-4 which was in the process of crashing in flames into the River Dee. Although this aircraft, which was fully loaded with bombs and which on impact exploded, there were two servivors from the crew of five who were later captured. To this day the 111 still remains in it's 'watery grave' in the middle of the River Dee just a mile or less from my home.

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