ATTACKS BY ALLIED BOMBERS

Waikato Times, Volume 130, Issue 21708, 20 April 1942, Page 3

ATTACKS BY ALLIED BOMBERS

HEAVY RAIDS ON PRINCIPAL CITIES

INDUSTRIAL AREAS DAMAGED MANY CASUALTIES

(United Press Assn.—Elec. Tel. Copyright) NEW YORK, April 10 An announcemrnt hy the Imperial Japanese Headquarters and broadcast hy the Tokio official radio states that hostile bombers attacked Japan yesterday for the first time. The announcement said the enemy bombed Tokio, Yokohama, Nagoya and Kobe. The planes approached from several directions. They reached Tokio and Y okohama at 1.30 p.m. and Nagoya at 3.30 p.m. In* addition a single plane dropped incendiary bombs on Kobe. An official communique admitted that the attackers struck against industrial areas ah»ut Tokio city and dropped many bombs. It said the Mikado’s Palace was not damaged and the Imperial family was safe. Shortly before the announcement of the Tokio raid the Japanese radio broadcast a statement that fire had destroyed 400 houses in the village of Oguni, in northern Japan, and that there were many casualties. There is no confirmation of the reports from British or American sources.

Explosions and Fires The first announcement by the Tokio radio was contained in an English language broadcast. It was repeated shortly afterward in a Japanese language broadcast, into which was injected a new statement that the enemy planes did not attempt to hit military establishments. This version said that damage was caused to schools and hospitals and that the raiding planes failed to cause any military damage. The casualties at the schools and hospitals were not then known, continued the broadcast, which added “This inhuman attack on these cultural establishments and residential districts is causing widespread indignation among the populace.’* Japanese defence headquarters, in amending earlier reports that no damage was done, admitted that fires were caused by incendiary bombs at Nagoya and Kobe, but said that these were under control in four hours. It added that incendiary bombs fell in six places at Nagoya and in three places in Kobe. The official communique said three of tiie attackers were shot down, although one radio version gave the number as nine. Immediately after the alert, according to the official statement, Japanese fighter planes and anti-aircraft batteries went into action, while the populace carried out safety measures for which they had long been drilled. Losses were exceedingly light. 1 The Tokio radio asserted that the bombers which made the raids were American machines. The Germancontrolled Oslo wireless gave a statement from Tokio that an American aircraft-carrier was seen off the coast of Japan. The Tokio radio said that six American aviators attached to ihe aircraft-carrier Yorktown were captured after being forced down in Japan. It gave the names of these men. However, the mother of one of ihe captives, who resides in Washington, said she had been officially notified that her son was captured during the raid on the Marshall Islands in February. The United States War and Navy Departments pointed out that if the bombing were a long-distance attack the aircraft would be many hours in returning to their starting point, and reports would not be available until then. In Chungking it was stated authoritatively that the raids were not made from bases in China. Crowded Wooden Buildings Japan’s six leading cities are Tokio, Osaka, Nagoya, Kobe, Kyoto and Yokohama. Into those cities which the Japanese say have been bombed are crammed about oneseventh of the population of the whole country, together with a dangerous concentration of a most important part of the nation’s war industries. The majority of the buildings are of wood. Windows are of paper, covered at night by wooden screens.