PLYMOUTH'S SUFFERING.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXI, Issue 97, 24 March 1941, Page 7

PLYMOUTH'S SUFFERING.

SECOND SUCCESSIVE RAID.

WIDESPREAD RUINATION,

LONDON, March 23. The Nazis left a trail of smouldering ruins, razed buildings, homeless people, trapped men, women and children and many dead, in the second night raid running on Plymouth on Friday night. It is estimated that 25,000 incendiary bombs and hundreds of explosive bombs were hurled down from planes which seemed to fly very low. The fires once were so numerous and fierce that it was impossible tor the fire services to tackle them all simultaneously. Many buildings damaged on the previous night are now completely destroyed. Soldiers and other servicemen helped the civil defence workers.

The Australian Prime Minister (Mr Menzies), who arrived in Plymouth shortly before the- blitz began, spent the night in the town. Ho was not hurt.

Apparently determined to wipe out the historic town, hundreds of German bombers blasted great sections of Plymouth into ruins in the second straight night blitz attack. Many thousands of roof-spotters and fire-spotters tackled incendiary bombs while bombs of all calibres continued to fall.

The official communique states that the raid, which began shortly after dark, lasted until just after midnight. It was on a fairly heavy scale and many fires were started. These were promptly -fought by the fire services, but considerable damage was done to some public buildings, shops, and houses. Full reports of the casualties are not. yet available, but it is feared that they may be fairly heavy. Diving*from low cloud, two Messerschmitt planes bombed an East Coast town and damaged houses yesterday Several people were killed and injured. A.German plane which attempted to cross the East Anglian coast met fierce gunfire and, with smoke pouring from its tail, was seen to crash into the sea

Uato last night one of the few raiders which ventured over England was shot down bv anti-aircraft fire and crashed in a field near an East Coast town. Two of the crew were killed and two taken to hospital. An official communique states that enemy activity over this country during daylight yesterday again was on a small scale. Bombs were dropped at places in East Anglia, causing some damage and a small number of casualties, but no other incidents were reported. TRAGIC BOMB TOLL.

The Clydeside tenement from which Frederick Clark (who later died; and John Cormack were brought out was a house of tragedy. Cormack, who i.-> now recovering, said he heard a girl moaning and appealing for help.'The rescuers, therefore, worked to the utmost all night and reached the girl, but she was dead. They then tunnelled on and eight more bodies have been brought out thus far, including i mother, father, and three daughters, two unknown women, and an unknown youth. The latest list of awards to civilians includes a number of. George Medals, and among the recipients is a 15-year-old coster boy. J. T. Cain, says a British Official Wireless message. When a paint factory's premises received a direct hit from a bomb and the building caught fire the police were joined by Cain, who knew that' several persons were trapped in a private basement shelter directly belou- the fire. In spite of the debris and oil and paint and the rapidly approaching flames the officers and the boy rapidly freed six men from the wreckage. A few minutes later the whole interior of 'the building collapsed. There would have been no possible chance of escape for the rescued persons, states the official announcement, had the constables and the boy not accepted the risk and faced it with gallantry and courage.