BARNEHURST,Kent 15 September 1940:A Survivor's Lucky Escape

As the end of school holidays approached in September 1940,I was staying for a few days with my grandmother and aunt at their home in Eversley Avenue,Barnehurst.With me were my parents and brother.I was soon to become a reluctant evacuee to a Surrey town,by joining the London school to which I had won a scholarship at the outbreak of war,a year earlier.I was 12 years old.
On Sunday 15th September,during the air raid, we stood in the garden of granny's house,watching as the blue sky was filled with the contrails of the approaching enemy force.As the dogfight developed above us,we were so entranced by the curving patterns that there was no thought of danger from falling debris,let alone bombs!
Suddenly,we became aware that aircraft were approaching at a low level,and we saw a Dornier come over the rooftops from a northerly direction,pursued by a British fighter plane.We could see that one of the Dornier's engines had been disabled,and that the plane was heading towards May Place at the top of the hill,about a quarter of a mile away.At the hilltop,the Dornier disappeared from view but had evidently crashed,because a large cloud of smoke arose.We cheered as the pursuing fighter returned and executed a dashing victory roll over the crash site before speeding off to return to the battle.
My father,despite protestations from the rest of the family,set out with me in tow,to see what had happened to the Dornier.We hurried down Eversley Avenue,went under the railway bridge,past the little playground,where I had often whiled away an hour or two,and then on up the incline of Manor Way.There were many other pedestrians heading in the same direction,and when we reached the entrance to the Golf Club,a large crowd had already assembled.
Seeking an easier entry to the crash site,my father led the way to a wooded track(footnote 1),where a brick wall ran parallel to the pathway,a few yards away.We joined the stream of people clambering through a gap in the wall.
A policeman stood nearby,warning everyone that it was dangerous to enter,but his words fell on deaf ears,such was the excitement caused by this unusual event.Tragically,in the course of this duty,that constable was soon to lose his own life.(footnote 2).
When we had got over the wall,my father told me to stay there,while he went forward to where the wreckage was burning,about 20 yards away.I looked round and saw that I was in a derelict orchard,and I became aware of a low roaring sound,close by.Peering through the undergrowth,I saw,to my horror,that about 10 feet away,a high explosive bomb was lying on the ground,its nose pointing towards the wall.Its fins were missing,and from the broken rear end a jet of orange-coloured flame was pouring.A small crowd of onlookers had gathered round.
Like many boys at that time,I had absorbed a good deal of information about the construction and functioning of weaponry,so it was hardly surprising that the first thought that came into my mind was that when the burning of the bomb's contents reached its detonator,there would be trouble!With that,I flung myself face down into a shallow depression in the ground,intending to crawl away.This action probably saved my life,as the bomb exploded at that moment.There was a deafening bang and I felt an overwhelming pressure on my back.This was followed by a torrent of earth and debris.I got to my feet and began to run after my father,with the screams of the wounded ringing in my ears.A boy,older than me,was sitting dazed on the ground,where he had been thrown by the explosion;there was a gaping wound in his leg.My father emerged from the smoke;his face was drained of colour,and bore an expression of mixed emotion that I had never seen before.Grabbing my arm,he said "Come on son,we must get away from here".
We made our way back to Eversley Avenue along a track behind the houses on Manor Way.There was relief at our safe return,but I was given strict instructions not to talk about the ghastly events I had witnessed.
Subsequently,on overhearing the conversation of my elders,I learnt how fortunate I had been not to be numbered among the dead and injured.My father also revealed that he had retrieved a souvenir,the barrel of a machine gun,which he had concealed down his trouser leg as we hurried away!That memento remained in our London home for several years,to my mother's disquiet,until it was handed in at the time of a weapons amnesty after the war.
In the course of my life,I have had several narrow escapes from disaster,but none so dramatic as this.The memory of September 15th 1940 remains as clear in my mind as though it were yesterday.
Footnote 1
On the Barnehurst website (www.barnehurst.com)there are some modern views of May Place Park in the Picture Gallery.Image No 3,"Woods" shows a track which bears a striking resemblance to that from which we made our entry to the crash site.It looks so peaceful now,but for me it is poignantly evocative of the tragic event that occurred nearby.
Footnote 2
Special Constable Leonard Francis Clarke 532 'R' warrant No 101192 was seriously injured by the explosion and he died on 26 September at Woolwich and District Memorial Hospital,Shooters Hill.He was 28 years years old and worked from Bexleyheath Police Station.He was married,and he lived in Parkside Avenue,Barnehurst with his wife,Hilda.His sacrifice was one of many suffered by members of the Civil Emergency Services during the war.They will rank alongside those of the Armed Forces when we remember them on National Commemoration Day, 10 July 2005.

People’s War references:-
A3563570
A2706897
A2295524

Dr Gordon J Bennett
June 2005

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