大象传媒

The Wilkinsons Factory on King Street in North Shields had a communal shelter for the whole area in it's basement beneath the factory floor.

It was a great place to be as a nine year old lad; with locals singing along to a man playing the accordian which created a great atmosphere which we all made to cover the noise of the bombers overhead.

I'd been in the shelter under the Wilkinson Factory on a few occasions before we had our own shelter built in our yard in Reed Street, 50 yards from the factory.

The attack that demolished the factory happened only two days after our shelter was completed, and we only suffered a shower of flying debris when the factory was hit.

The factory itself was flattened and its basement shelter was crushed, killing many of those sheltering inside.

My father, a member of the First Aid Party (FAP), and other neighbours all helped in the rescue of the survivors despite loosing their family members and friends in the blast.

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