The Ernest Brown Junior Instructional Centre on Durning Road in Edge Hill, was chosen as the site for a Air raid shelter during WW2. Its basement, and in paticular its Boiler room with its reinforced ceiling offered protection to the public from the enemy bombs falling nearby.
On the evening of 28th November 1940 the warning was given, and local people started making their way towards the shelter. Men, women and children dressed warm, and mothers wrapped their babies in blankets to protect from the cold night. Two trams stopped outside the building and the passengers joined those already inside the shelter. In all over 300 people entered the basement as the bombs began to fall.
At around 1.55 am on the 29th November the school took a direct hit from a parachute mine. The building collapsed sending debris straight onto those sheltering in the basement, many people were buried alive. The boiler burst, streaming out hot water, and burst gas pipes alighted. Anyone not killed outright now faced these horrific dangers. Up above, the building was ablaze, and rescue workers struggled to help free the survivors.
During the next two days the rescue effort went on as first the survivors, and then the bodies of the dead were brought to the surface. It became clear that retrieving all the bodies was hopeless, and the call was made to cover the area in lime and seal it over. Just as work was about to begin a fireman noticed a hand coming from the rubble, and a 12 year old girl became the last survivor to be saved. The area was then limed and sealed, thus becoming a grave to those that remained.
Police figures gave the total number of dead as 166. However it is widely believed the the figure was much bigger at around 180. Of the survivors only 30 people escaped unharmed. Many spoke of having to walk over dead bodies to escape. Many of the dead remained unidentified, and were buried together in a grave at Anfield cemetery. Winton Churchill described the bombing as " The single worst civilian incident of the war "
The tragedy left a lasting impression on the local community. The event became known as " The Durning Road Bombing "
Негізгі бет Durning Road Bombing Memorial, Liverpool
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