MURMANSK PORT

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 13773, 16 October 1942, Page 2

MURMANSK PORT

THREE TIMES AS BUSY In spite of German boasts that the Arctic port of Murmansk has been destroyed from the air, the port is not only still functioning but is increasingly active. The flags of nearly all the Allied countries can be seen on ships in the harbour. In January, 1942, the load handled by each dock worker was just under three tons per working day. In February it rose to 4.1 tons, in March to 5.1 tons and in April to 5.2 tons. In May there was a leap forward to 9.3 tons per day, and in June this figure was exceeded. Having failed to capture Murmansk by frontal attack, the Germans declared in May that they would destroy all the wharves from the air. They made dozens of raids in June, dropping hundreds of highexplosive bombs and thousands of incendiaries. They succeeded in burning down a number of blocks of workers’ houses, the homes of merchant seamen, dockers and fishermen, but the port continued its work without interruption.