NAVY TAKES A HAND

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 October 1940, Page 5

NAVY TAKES A HAND

BOMBARDMENT OF INVASION PORTS Considerable Damage Done at Dunkirk SUCCESSFUL R.A.F. ATTACKS IN BAD WEATHER ENEMY BASES AND FACTORIES POUNDED The British Navy, as well as the R.A.F., has struck heavily at the German invasion ports in occupied France, a 8.8. U broadcast states. An Admiralty communique states that British forces on Tuesday night heavily bombarded Dunkirk, causing considerable damage. Tuesday night’s operations of the K.A.U. over Germany and German-occupied territory were carried out in bad weather, which did not interfere with the success of the attacks. The naval bases at Kiel and Hamburg were among the objectives and a large number of heavy bombs were dropped on shipping and wharves. Other targets bomoed were power stations, harbour works, shipbuilding yards and munition and aircraft factories, while the Channel ports received their usual pounding and the gun emplacements were not forgotten. Bombing of London HEAVY RAIDS ON TUESDAY NIGHT NEAREST APPROACH TO MASSED ATTACK AT NIGHT Low-lying clouds over London did not stop the Germans from dropping bombs immediately they arrived yesterday and it was thus proved that the bombs were not aimed at any target, the 8.8. C. states. After the heavy raids of Tuesday night, the enemy was surprisingly inactive over Britain yesterday. It is stated that 250 enemy planes are believed to i have taken part in Tuesday night’s raids and it is estimated that 200 tons of bombs were dropped on London alone. It was the nearest approach to a massed attack that has taken place at night. The amount of damage was not as great as that done in a raid in early September. Among the buildings hit were four schools, two hospitals, working-class flats and public shelters. Seven people were killed and a number injured in a public shelter holding 110 people when a bomb made a near miss. Five were killed when another public shelter holding mostly women, and children was hit. A school house used as an air-raid shelter was hit by two large-calibre bombs and a heavy casualty list and death roll is feared. Many of those who escaped were blown out of the building. It is believed that a twin-engine bomber was shot down at sea yesterday afternoon.