HEAVY DAMAGE IN GERMANY

Southland Times, Issue 24492, 21 July 1941, Page 5

HEAVY DAMAGE IN GERMANY

MUNSTER AND AACHEN (8.0.W.) RUGBY, July 19. Many unofficial reports have been reaching England lately of the very considerable damage in many of the great industrial centres of Western Germany as a result of the nightly raids of the Royal Air Force. Dusseldorf, according to several reports, is in ruins, while Hamburg and Bremen have suffered immense damage. Authoritative information concerning the damage to two of Germany’s principal railway centres serves to illustrate the effect the Royal Air Force bombing is havihg on industrial Germany.

“At least one third of Munster and Aachen have been destroyed or seriously damaged,” says an Air Ministry bulletin. “Aachen had been attacked previously, but the most important raid was made during the night of July 10, when terrific damage was done. Loads of high explosive bombs and 7000 incendiary bombs were dropped. Some of the biggest bombs carried by the Royal Air Force found their mark in the city in good weather, when close observation was possible. The pilots’ reports have since been confirmed by reconnaissance and it has been established that this particular raid was one of the most successful of the Royal Air Force night attacks. Good navigation ensured that almost every bomb reached its intended target and the town was thoroughly plastered. FIRE CAUSES HAVOC

“The damage was mostly in the centre, but no part of the town escaped. Fire caused widespread havoc and many areas suffered heavily from blast. Craters in the roadways disorganized public services. There were three main areas of damage by high explosive bombs and fire in the centre of the town, in which are important municipal and state buildings, commercial houses and warehouses, shopping centres and residential quarters. These three sections, which are close together, measure approximately 1100 yards by 700 yards and cover approximately 30 per cent, of the town proper. About 60 to 70 per cent, of the buildings in each area were destroyed and almost all the remainder damaged. “Munster tells the same tale. The town was attacked in force on the nights of July 7 and 8 and three times since. Again a large tonnage of the biggest high explosive bombs and thousands of incendiary bombs were dropped. Reconnaissance has shown that very heavy damage was done. Entire areas were completely burnt out, including industrial and residential buildings. A single heavy bomb devastated an area of more than 700 square yards and another had a similar effect, covering 600 yards square. These two areas

have been demolished and are surrounded by much larger areas of fire and blast damaged buildings. “Among the districts almost completely gutted by fire are the Nordstrasse to the Kempstrasse and parts of the Lengenstrasse, Wermelinstrasse, Gartenstrasse, Spierkerhof, Tibusstrasse, Sonnenstrasse and Winkelstrasse. Areas south-west of the main station measuring 95,000 square yards suffered equally. Other districts have been heavily damaged including 25,000 square yards between the railway and the DortmundEms canal. In this section major damage has been done to an area of at least 250,000 square yards. “Aachen and Munster are but two of the many industrial centres of Western Germany which have received the heaviest Royal Air Force attacks during the past five weeks.”