SIRENS SOUND

Wairarapa Times-Age, 29 August 1940, Page 5

SIRENS SOUND

THUDS HEARD IN LONDON WEST END GUNS SPEEDILY IN ACTION. INDISCRIMINATE GERMAN ATTACKS. (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) LONDON, August 27. Warning sirens sounded in London twice tonight. Before the first sirens were! heard a plane passed over a south London area which had previously been bombed, and some residents took to the shelters. Thuds like the falling of bombs were heard in the West End. Simultaneously, enemy planes were reported over south-west and northwest towns, the south-east of England, and Wales. Later three towns in Wales, two in the south-west of England, five in the south-east, and six in the Midlands reported raiders. Immediately the warning had sounded in London anti-aircraft guns were in action, and brilliant bomb flashes which were beyond earshot of the central area extended in a semicircle. The ground defences were far more active that on the previous night. The flash of bombs was regular, and several very big flashes were seen. A rosy glow appeared on the horizon at one point, over which a raider circled. This raid lasted for two hours 24 minutes. London’s second raid lasted for 40 minutes. A single plane approached the London area and dropped incendiary bombs, most of which fell on waste ground, but others caused fires which were quickly extinguished. Raiders later appeared over a seventh town in the Midlands, and planes passed over a south-eastern town at regular intervals for an hour, flying singly at a height of 25.000 feet. Bombs were heard in the distance. Raiders swooped down over one north-east town, machine-gunning indiscriminately, including a passenger train, but there were no casualties.

NO CASUALTIES IN LONDON

LONDON, August 28. (The Air Ministry in a communique Ln last night’s -‘nuisance raiding” states that dispersed and indiscriminate attacks were made in many districts. It is learned that there was only a small sprinkling of bombs on the outskirts of London and the damage was slight. There was not a single casualty. Some of the other districts suffered more than London did from the scattered bombing. Four enemy planes were shot down yesterday. This morning 18 or 20 bombers appeared over a south-east area with a large fighter escort and met with heavy opposition. One Messerschmitt was shot down. MET & BEATEN ENEMY PLANES IN THAMES VALLEY. EARLY REPORTS SHOW SIX SHOT DOWN. (British Official Wireless.) (■Received This Day. 9.35 a.m.) RUGBY, August 28.

An Air Ministry communique states: “Enemy activities this morning have been almost entirely confined to two attempts to penetrate our defences in the Thames Estuary and in Kent. In both cases our fighters have intercepted the enemy and broken up his formation. Early reports of these engagements show that six enemy aircraft have been shot down by our fighters.”,