View Single Post
  #3  
Old 15-10-2015, 01:00 PM
Coquet's Avatar
Coquet Coquet is offline
Administrator
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Amble
Posts: 3,253
Default

I knew you'd get that one. .. and yes, June 1939, before the war had started.

Here's the full story:

(picture title for those above)
On Friday evening, when an air raid rehearsal was held in the Redrow and Broomhill district, men, women, and children went down the various colliery drifts leading to the workings of Broomhill colliery, for shelter. The pictures obtained at the East Chevington Drift show: — a party, in the charge of an air raid warden (left), going down the scores of steps of the East Chevington Drift, while at the East Chevington Landing at the bottom of the drift, the party, in charge of the Master Shifter (left), are pictured after the order "Gas Masks On" was sent down.



Red Row A.R.P. Rehearsal.
Colliery Drifts Used As Shelters


Considerable activity prevailed in the Red Row and Broomhill district on Friday night, when an A.R.P. practice was staged by members of the local A.R.P.organisation, with Mr D.P. Jackson as head warden.
The Broomhill Coal Company kindly co-operated in the arrangements by allowing the colliery buzzer to be sounded and consenting to the use of their drifts as air raid shelters.
At 8:30 PM a succession of short blasts by the colliery buzzer indicated that imaginary aircraft were within five minutes of Red Row. On the sound of the buzzer, men, women and children, armed with gas masks and pit lamps, rushed to the drifts at East Chevington, Red Row, Woodside, South Broomhill, and North Broomhill.
Air raid wardens and first-aid parties took up their positions at the various points, shepherding and guiding the civilians to the comparative safety afforded by the drifts. The Red Row Infants School was utilised as the first-aid post, in charge of Doctor Scott, and members of the local Ambulance Corps.
The local ambulances and residents of the district who possessed cars offered these as ambulances to carry "casualties" to the clearing station, while lorries conveyed rescue squads to various points where help was required.
Members of the Boys Brigade acted as runners, conveying messages from district wardens to headquarters, and thus keeping the head warden informed as to the progress of operations.
Captain Fox, A.R.P. Officer, Morpeth, was present with five umpires who watched the operations and later congratulated the organisations on the highly commendable way in which the various branches of the organisation had been carried out.
It was the 1st practice of its kind held in the district, and although maybe not perfect, yet it prove quite satisfactory.
Reply With Quote