Gas Mask Panic! London

In the words of that late comedian Rob Wilton "The Day The War Broke Out" I was playing in an abandoned car, yes, they did have abandoned cars in those day's as well, with my friend Alan. All of a sudden we heard the dreaded air raid siren which announced the start of WW2. Being only five years of age this frightened me and I wanted to go home to my mum. Alan said it was only a factory dinner siren but I wasn't having any of that. Running home to my mother who was now standing outside of our house she promptly took me up stairs to the bedroom cupboard where the recently issued gas masks were stored. As dad was at work being a bus driver and on war reserve she had to take charge. Looking back on this I'm afraid mum panicked and promptly put on our gas masks. She then joined our other neighbours in the street where we were wearing our masks. The local air raid warden then came over to us and told mum that we didn't have to put them on until we heard him using his rattle warning of a gas attack.

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