Saved St. Paul’s With Two Seconds to Spare
Received Sunday, 9.50 p.m. LONDON, Aug. 12.
Lieutenant Ronald James Smith, R.N.V.R., at the risk of his life saved St. Paul’s Cathedral from blowing up by a bomb in the London blitz. An unexploded mine fell three yards from the cathedral wall and Lieut. Smith was sent to render it safe. He started to unscrew the disc from the fuse when a fire engine passed, starting the bomb mechanism. Lieut. Smith knew there were 17 seconds only in which to stop the mine exploding. Undaunted he began the race against time and inserted the safety gap preventing the explosion with a second or two to spare.
On another occasion Lieut. Smith working under a mine itself saved a church in Glasgow by holding the safety fuse in his hand. For exceptional courage he was awarded the George Medal in 1942.
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Bibliographic details
Manawatu Times, Volume 70, Issue 190, 13 August 1945, Page 5
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148Saved St. Paul’s With Two Seconds to Spare Manawatu Times, Volume 70, Issue 190, 13 August 1945, Page 5
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