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This story was submitted to the People’s War site by Teresa Cammock from CSV Action Desk on behalf of Kenneth Spurrier and has been added to the site with his permission. Mr Spurrier fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

It was 15th October 1940. My sister Lilian and her close friend Annie Masters had gone to Hope Street night school to study shorthand.

At our home in Wrentham Street, Dad, Mom and I, on hearing the sirens had gone ‘under the stairs’ to shelter as we had done many times before. Whilst listening to the sounds of raids elsewhere where ‘someone was copping it’ as we used to say.

That night about 10pm a bomb exploded nearby, causing my Mother to enquire in fright “where’s our Lil?”

Lil was walking along Gooch Street with Annie when they heard a bomb whistling down.

They dived down into a doorway and after the explosion; Annie said “that sounded as though it was by our moms.” They said their goodbyes and Lilian ran home. Annie found that her mothers’ house had taken a direct hit. They were alive but trapped in the cellar. Unfortunately a gas pipe had been fractured and most of the Masters family were gassed to death.

A member of the ��ѿ��ý Guard, Commander George Inwood went three times into the cellar to rescue someone, but the third time he was overcome by the gas and died. He was awarded the George Cross and he is buried in Yardley cemetery.

The father of the Masters family missed the disaster by working nights with the G.P.O. One year later, however, to the date, he was killed in a road accident. Annie died of cancer some years ago.

Life is strange and hard.

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