BOMB ATTACKS

Hokitika Guardian, 12 July 1940, Page 5

BOMB ATTACKS

MADE ON BRITAIN

MANY RAIDERS DOWN ID,

(Per British Official Wireless.)

RUGBY, July 10

Wednesday’s air fights lasted all day. They mostly were off the south coast and the east coast of. England. All day long the pilots combat reports'Tcept coming in and always told the same story, of victory against odds. The Royal Air. Force fighter ’plane pilots inflicted the greatest damage on the German Air Force since the bombing raids on Britain began. In addition to the fourteen enemy bombers ami fighters shot down, 23 more were so severely damaged they would bo unlikely to have reached home. Two British fighter .’.planes were lost, but the pilot of one is safe.

RAIDERS RE-APPEAR ON THURSDAY.

(United Press Association—By Electrio Telegraph—Copyright).

LONDON, J,uly 11

An enemy raider flew over the northeast of England early this morning, but it quickly went out to sea when a British fighter ’plane appeared. No ; bombs were, dropped. German raiders have also appeared over the south-west of England this morning.

The Air Ministry reports as follows: Royal Air Force fighter ’planes have shot down a bomber over the English Channel this morning.

After circling over a south coast district of England early this morning, a German raider dropped four- bombs, and also machine-gunned the area. The bombs demolished a cafe, as well as damaging three or four houses. One man was killed and a woman was critically injured. GERMAN REPORT. : - ' \ ' BERLIN, July 10.' A German' communique says: Our ’planes sank a patrol-boat aiid 26,000 tons of merchant ’ shipping off the British coast, 1 Ten more merchantmen were seriously damaged or set on fire. Borqbs hit oil-tanks at the air bases at Pembroke and Ipswich, and the munition, works at Norwich, Leeds, Swansea- and Tilbury. , y‘ . , A German communique, to-night, admits that four, of their ’planes had not returned from an attack on a strongl.V-guarded British convoy in the Straits of Dover.

The communique/ claims that 10 British fighters, escorting the convoy, were shot down; that a cruiser and four merchantmen, totalling 21,000 tons, were sunk; and that a cruiser and three merchantmen, totalling 19,000 tons, left burning, listing heavily, and unable to proceed.

ENEMY BOMBS DROPPED

(Received this day at 9.25 a.m.). LONDON, July 11

Four bombs were dropped on a Midlands village, damaging property. Several persons wore injured by flying

g lass - ' ’ • , .... . . - Enemy ’planes are believed to have been over, a south-west district, but no damage was done.

FURTHER. ATTACKS. SMALL LOSS OF LIFE. (Received this day at 10.0 a.m.). LONDON, July 11. The Ministry of Home Security announced: “During the. night, bombs were dropped in a number of scattered points in east and souht-east counties and Midlands. No casualties are reported, except a small number. in two east coast towns, a few being fatal. Slight damage of no military importance was caused.” The Ministry later announced that enemy aircraft, this morning, dropped bombs on the east- coast. A railway siding was hit and several persons hilled. Some damage was also done in small towns in the Midlands, where casualties were caused to children by flying glass, and a few persons were killed. 12 GERMANS DOWNED. (Received this day at 10.50 a.m.). ' • ... LONDON. July 11. It is officially stated that R.A.F. fighters shot down 12 German ’planes and damaged many more to-day, when strong forces of bombers, escorted by fighters, attempted to attack shipping and other objects on the British coast. One of our fighters was lost.