QUIET BROKEN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 191, 13 August 1940, Page 7

QUIET BROKEN.

PEACEFUL SUNDAY. Bombs Fall While Thousands Attend Church. United Press Association.—Copyright. LOXDOX, Aug. 12. Thousands of people were in the churches on Sunday when the full fury of the German mass attacks broke out along the coast from the south-east to the south-west. It was a gloriously fine day and observers on the British coast were able to see through glasses events on the French coast as the British fighters carried the battle back to the German base. A crescendo of anti-aircraft gunfire rose along the coast, but the church services proceeded as usual. They were punctuated by machine-gun fire as the British aeroplanes came into action and coastal batteries along the entire seafront opened up, tur:::::g the peaceful Sunday into a day ot war. Spectators during lulls in the raids picked up souvenirs until the sudden blazing of the guns again sent the majority to cover. Raids Well Planned. The raids were systematically planned. Reconnaissance aeroplanes flew over as dawn was breaking. Meseerschmitts followed shortly afterward and made determined attacks on the balloon barrages at Dover, Portland and Weymouth, in order to clear the way, after which squadrons of bombers, escorted by fighters, were launched. The main attacks were carried out in conjunction with an attack by 20 bombers against a convoy, in which the Germans claim to have sunk a ship of 8000 tons, seriously damaged another, and set on fire another of 5000 tons. British reports say that two escorting warships shot down five of the attacking bombers.