Transcript of Fred Fancourt's account of the Blitz
The impact of the war on the Police Service as I saw it
On the outbreak of war all leave was suspended. I myself was recalled from my two week annual leave in Somerset after having had only one week. No compensation was made for this or for the loss of subsequent weekly rest days. Although I was not aware of any announcement it appeared obvious that promotions and retirements were also suspended. I recall none having taken place. Factories were turned over to production for the war effort. This very much included those making motor vehicles. No cars could be purchased new for the Police Service. It was because of this that I was employed with another constable in maintaining the vehicles that we had. Good class second hand cars were able to be sold at several times their original cost. Dealers were keen to get into the buying and selling market. The Birmingham force bought several Austin 10h.p. cars from such a dealer in South Wales at Blackwood. We collected them one Sunday. At times we were also able to buy second-hand surplus Army vehicles one of which was a motorcycle and sidecar finished in Khaki which gave us good service. I mentioned earlier that I answered a call for a Police Ambulance to bring in some air-raid casualties. This was the exception to the rule because most air raid casualties were dealt with by the Civil Defence. We had stationed with us a small van of the Home Office, big enough for a group of people to stand inside. This was in the charge of a Police Sergeant, trained for the purpose. All officers carried service gas masks and inside the van would be released a quantity of tear gas and the people in the van would experience the effect of this with and without the gas mask being worn. This van served all the surrounding Police Forces. Most Police stations had a decontamination building for use in the event of poison gas being used. Fortunately none was used.
In the early days of the war as soon as the air raid sirens sounded we had to report to our station where amongst other things we would carry out the duty of ‘Fire Watching’. Much damage was done by enemy incendiary bombs which came down in their thousands with an uncanny sound. They were of a similar size to a modern washing up liquid bottle and made of magnesium fitted with fins designed to check their rate of fall. The idea was for them to penetrate the roof and then lodge in the space beneath. They ignited on impact. Water would not extinguish them. We used to use bags of sand. My house, with many others in the Small Heath area was without water, gas and electricity for some time and the nearest water supply was upwards of half a mile away. I remember on the morning following the concentrated blitz on Coventry, taking a quantity of prepacked sandwiches for the benefit of a contingent of Birmingham policemen taken there during the night to assist the Coventry force.
G F Fancourt
Return to the Blitz: Air-Raid worksheet. |
Preface
Introduction
Police & WWII
County Chief Constable
A Volunteer
Modern Echoes
Work Sheets
Resources
Acknowledgements