On this day, 1944

[ianr]

"05/08/1944 16:45 23 [killed]

This was a very serious V1 incident, one of the worst in South London. The V1 hit the co-op store at the corner of Northross Road in Lordship Lane. The Co-op and 6 other shops were demolished and 20 houses damaged in Lordship land and 40 in Shawbury Road.A Salvation army hall was also damaged. It is stated in ARP reports held in the public records office that damage extended across a 700 yard radius, greater than the normal blast area. This is probably due to the fact that later V1's were packed with a heavier, more deadly warhead. It was also reported that Anderson shelters in the area stood up well to the blast. Bulldozers were called in to clear the debris and one tram track was cleared by 20.30 of the same day. The whole block where the Coop stood has been re-developed with post war shops. The opposite side of Lordship Lane also shows significant signs of re-building as do houses up Shawbury Road" http://www.flyingbombsandrockets.com/web_content_dulwich.html

[macroban]

I was thinking about this when I woke up this morning.

Such mundane random carnage on a Saturday morning when families were out shopping in Lordship Lane.

I really can't comprehend the scale of the casualities. Memory says 60 dead and uncounted numbers wounded.

[macroban]

We had a brief discussion about this last year. It may be of interest to new EDF members.

[Loz]

Is there an ED Historical Society or some such? There should be a plaque or something on the Coop marking this event.

[jimbo1964]

During the Dulwich festival somebody did a bomb damage historical walk. I missed it, annoyingly.

The V1 which took out the top of Friern is probably the whole reason why I grew up in ED. We got a council house on the redevelopment of the bomb site and I moved in when I was two weeks old.

[kford]

There's a great pic in a book in Dulwich library, taken just after, showing the crater and piles of rubble where the Co-op stood, with wrecked houses up Shawbury Road and EDers going about their business.

[Jimbob]

on this day 1945

[mockney piers]

Good point jimbob, a bit more carnage than a V1 is the understatement of the century.

[Keef]

http://www.hiroshima-remembered.com/photos/hiroshima/images/HR18.jpg

Truly scary image. I always thought it looked like a bearded old man in a hat :-S

Lets hope we don't ever see something similar!

[RosieH]

Holy fucking crap. You forget sometimes don't you? I say forget, but it's a learned memory for the likes of many (most?) of us..

A friend was just telling me about a trip to Siberia (voluntary) and seeing three missile silos marked with the names of Canadian cities - Canada, with its bears and maple syrup! Apparently so to create an impenetrable nuclear wasteland to the north of the US should the need arise.

There should be more plaques.