Tagged with: South West Wales
Posts (49)
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The bombing of the Pembroke Dock oil tanks
Phil Carradice
Seventy years ago this week, on 19 August 1940, three German Junkers bombers, escorted by two ME109 fighters, flew in over the Pembrokeshire coast and dropped their bombs onto the oil tanks high above the west Wales town of Pembroke Dock. The tanks contained thousands of gallons of vitally important fuel oil and when one of the bombs hit its target it started a fire, the like of which had never been seen in Wales before. A sheet of flame leapt into the air and the noise of the explosion echoed around the town. Then a huge column of smoke began to billow out of the stricken tank and climb like the sword of Damocles into the sky. The smoke hung there, above the town and the desperate Civil Defence workers who fought to quell the blaze for the next 18 days. The Pembroke Dock oil tank fire was the largest fire that Britain had seen since the Great Fire of London in 1666, and the resources to fight it were pitifully few. Initially just one tank had been hit but despite the heroic efforts of Pembroke Dock fire chief Arthur Morris and his team of part-time firemen the flames soon began to spread from one tank to the next. Hurried appeals were sent out to fire brigades all across the country, asking for men and fire fighting appliances. Help came from all quarters, from Milford Haven and Narberth and from places as far afield as Swansea and Cardiff. But, at this early stage, nobody quite realised what was facing them. As one Cardiff fireman later said: "We'd got as far as St Clears when we noticed the cloud. We didn't realise what was going on until we got a bit further and by then, of course, we were right in the middle of it." In the end 22 brigades were involved, over 500 men, from places as far away as Birmingham and Cardiff. The blaze raged for 18 days and, eventually, 11 of the 18 tanks were destroyed, their valuable contents just burning, vanishing into the ether or running in a great black river down the road towards the town. For a while there was a very real possibility that the fire would spread even further than the tank farm and citizens of Pembroke Dock lived in constant fear that the burning oil would set all of their houses alight. Dozens of firemen were injured and overcome with exhaustion. Tragically, five Cardiff firemen were killed when the wall of one burning tank just splintered or ruptured and a sea of burning oil engulfed them. Their names are still remembered in Pembroke Dock - Frederick George Davies, Clifford Miles, Ivor John Kilby, Trevor Charles Morgan and John Frederick Thomas - and on a memorial at the site of the inferno. Molten oil ran out of the tanks, coating the firemen who, in those days, had no specialised equipment or clothing. Sometimes it seemed as if it was raining oil. The men who fought the fire never forgot it: "Oh, the flames, they were 30 or 40 feet up in the air and you wouldn't believe the width of them. And then the smoke. And oil dropping down. You couldn't go too close because it was so hot. "What we were doing was cooling the unaffected tanks and the ones on fire. But as one tank seemed to empty another would catch fire." When the fire was eventually extinguished controversy erupted. Arthur Morris, hero of the hour, a man who did not leave the scene of the blaze and had slept only in snatches - at the side of his Merryweather Fire Engine - for 18 days, was passed over in the awards so liberally given out to others - several of whom spent virtually no time at all at the scene of the disaster. Arthur Morris was never a "yes man," always being regarded as a fireman's fireman. But if he had been critical of the operation then no one ever knew. He remained tight-lipped and took the secret - if secret there was - with him to his grave. The Pembroke Dock fire was soon to be eclipsed by other fires in London, Coventry and Birmingham as the German bombing offensive gathered momentum. However, that should never minimise the significance of the disaster and seventy years ago this week it was a real and terrifying ordeal, not just for the firemen involved but for the whole of the small community of Pembroke Dock. At 11am on Thursday 19 August a service for veterans who fought the 1940 fire will be held at the South Pembrokeshire Golf Club with wreaths being laid at the memorial stone near the clubhouse. The service is open to all and is being organised on behalf of the town's Sunderland Trust and Museum Trust, in conjunction with the Golf Club. Read more on the Pembroke Dock Community Web Project. Feel free to comment! If you want to have your say, on this or any other 成人论坛 blog, you will need to sign in to your 成人论坛 iD account. If you don't have a 成人论坛 iD account, you can register here - it'll allow you to contribute to a range of 成人论坛 sites and services using a single login. Need some assistance? Read about 成人论坛 iD, or get some help with registering.
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Swansea church bells return to Chile
成人论坛 Wales History
Three church bells are to be returned to Chile after spending more than 150 years in a south Wales church. The bells had been sold for scrap following a fire at the church of La Compania de Jesus in the Chilean capital of Santiago in 1863. The blaze, which happened during the Catholic feas...
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Take a trip on the train
Phil Carradice
Most of us, when travelling by train, rarely look outside the windows of our carriage. We bury our heads in our book or newspaper and only glance up to confirm our station has appeared. But a whole world of history is lurking out there and, if we only knew it, there is more than enough to keep u...
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Victory by cow!
Phil Carradice
Many things can bring about victory in battle or war, not least a liberal helping of luck. But victory thanks to a herd of cows? Now that really does take some beating. The English Civil War began in 1642 and was, amongst many other things, the culmination of disputes between the king and p...
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Archaeological dig reveals Norman structures at Nevern Castle
成人论坛 Wales History
The remains of two towers and three hall-like buildings thought to date from the 12th century have been unearthed at the site around Nevern Castle in Pembrokeshire. Until this discovery little of the castle could be seen. The Norman castle was built in 1108, and according to Dr Chris Caple of Durham University, the newly discovered constructions appear "to have been a highly desirable stone residence, a visible display of wealth and significant technical achievement". The excavations of the castle grounds are being directed by Durham University and supported by archaeologist Peter Kane of Pemborkeshire Coast National Parks. Local volunteers from Cardigan, Newport and the Nevern area have also been involved. The National Park Authority, one of the partners participating in this project, has invited visitors on to attend guided tours of the digs. Read the story on the Western Mail website. Read the Wales History guide to castles. Feel free to comment! If you want to have your say, on this or any other 成人论坛 blog, you will need to sign in to your 成人论坛 iD account. If you don't have a 成人论坛 iD account, you can register here - it'll allow you to contribute to a range of 成人论坛 sites and services using a single login. Need some assistance? Read about 成人论坛 iD, or get some help with registering.
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History articles on 成人论坛 Local websites for Wales
成人论坛 Wales History
North East Wales reports on commemorations held to mark the part Flintshire played in the Battle of Britain. Read the story. North West Wales reports on Nant Gwrtheyrn used to be a little quarry village on the Ll欧n Peninsula's northern coast. But when the mine went, so did its residents. Today...
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Robert Recorde - the man who invented the equals sign
Phil Carradice
We've all used them, countless times, in maths lessons, in the bank, in working out our weekly bills. But, strangely, they didn't exist until 1557 and the man who invented them was a Welshman from Tenby. We are talking about the equals sign, the ubiquitous = mark that we all take for granted. And the man who invented them and used them for the first time was called Robert Recorde.
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The witch and the warship
Phil Carradice
Imagine the scene. The dockyard is full of workmen, women and children; bands are playing and eager spectators and townspeople mingle happily with dignitaries and naval officers. It is July 21 1853, and the 90 gun wooden hulled warship Caesar is about to be launched from the slipways of Pembroke...
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History highlights on 成人论坛 Local websites for Wales
成人论坛 Wales History
North West Wales has a feature on Gil Kennedy who had always kept quiet about his wartime experiences, but a chance find has inspired a children's book based on his story. Read the story. North East Wales reports on the town Shotton which has a history of military bravery with three servicemen ...
