LONDON BLITZ

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIX, Issue 21971, 24 May 1941, Page 5

LONDON BLITZ

SPIRIT OF WORKMEN Writing from London, an eminent electrical, engineer concerned with London’s supply of light and power has something to say in a letter to a Wellington friend on conditions in the metropolis. "It was nice to note that people on your side of the world are so well and truly with us in this war,” reads the letter, “and that occasionally friends on the other side give a thought to our troubles here. It is hardly necessary for- me to tell you that London, like the whole country, has got its chin well up, and we are determined here that we will do our stuff till Jerry is finished.

“Our undertaking (electrical supply), being a military objective, has naturally suffered a certain amount, but not so much as one might imagine. We have had a very large number of bombs of varying types and sizes on our stations from one side of London to the other, but we had only four men Injured. Then one bomb at Deptford, though causing virtually no damage to the undertaking, killed 16 of the staff and Injured 15 others, all workmen, which indicates that whether a bomb gets you or not is largely a matter of luck. "The spirit of the workmen here is magnificent," continues the letter. “Our staff is now close to 2000, and only one has left because of breakdown. I have been called out in the small hours of the morning on one or two occasions, and it is not too healthy to go through the streets when a blitz is on, but even so, I have not seen any sign of men faltering in their duty. “A number of the head office staff live in the air-raid shelter here, having sent their wives and families into the country for greater security, but there is just as big a danger of getting a bomb in the streets as in a power station.”