"Dozens pay their respects to war victims killed when a bomb hit their bus"

Hat tip Newham Recorder "Cllr and members of the public attending a vigil on Dames Road where a V1 flying bomb landed killing people on a bus outside the Holly Tree pub

Dozens gathered to pay their respects to Forest Gate’s war dead on the anniversary of the night a bomb hit a bus during the Second World War.

The event, organised by Forest Gate North Labour Party, was held at the site of the 1944 blast outside The Hollytree Pub in Dames Road.

It is thought around 20 people died in the explosion, although no reliable record exists because wartime press censorship stopped much detail being published in order to limit the information available to the enemy about attacks.

Cllr Seyi Akiwowo, one of the organisers of Thursday’s event, said: “The event was fantastic. It was put together at short notice and there was a good turnout. I’m glad we were able to pay our respects.”

In his speech at the vigil, Cllr Anam Islam said: “Now, just as then, the price we pay for liberty is eternal vigilance against racism and prejudice.”

West Ham MP Lyn Brown, who was unable to attend the event, told of its importance.

She said: “It is right and important that we commemorate those who perished or lost loved ones in the fight against fascism, and just as important that we remember the anti-fascist and anti-racist heritage of the East End with pride.

“Levels of racist, Islamophobic, and anti-Semitic hate crime have all risen over the past year, and it is important we draw on this past to bring us together and renew the fight against far-right ideology and its terrible effects. That aim will be easier to achieve if we have a more accurate narrative of what actually happened.”

Eyewitness Cyril Demarne is quoted in The Heroic Story of the Second World War Bomb Disposal Teams by James Owen as saying: “A trolley bus, crammed with home going workers, had caught the full blast and the whole area was a sickening sight.

“Dismembered bodies littered the roadway, others were splattered over the brickwork of the houses across the way and the wreckage of the trolley bus was simply too ghastly to describe.

“The lower deck seated passengers were all dead. Although many of the victims had been decapitated, they were still sitting down, as if waiting to have their fares collected.”

(the V1 flying Bomb landed just outside Newham but much of the bomb damage and deaths were inside modern Forest Gate. A 80 year old local resident who remembered being told about the attack pointed out to us the exact impact. The death toil was at least 38 and probably much more) 

Remembering V1 "Doodlebug" attack on Forest Gate

Hat tip to local history site "E7 Now and Then" for an excellent post on the carnage that was caused by a V1 Rocket hitting Dames Road, Forest Gate on 27 July 1944.

A trolley bus and homes were destroyed and this was the horrific account by Cyril Demarne who was a fireman of the time, and later became Chief Fire Officer of West Ham

"A particularly nasty, gory, situation confronted us, following a V1 explosion in Dames Road, Forest Gate. A trolley bus, crammed with home going workers had caught the full blast and the whole area was a sickening sight.

Dismembered bodies littered the roadway; others were splattered over the brickwork of the houses across the way and the wreckage of the trolley bus was simply too ghastly to describe.

 The roof and upper deck, together with the passengers, were blasted away. Standing passengers on the lower deck were also flung against the fronts of houses on the other side of the road. The lower deck seated passengers were all dead. Although many of the victims had been decapitated, they were still sitting down, as if waiting to have their fares collected".

How horrible. This description reminds me that there is no glory in war. I had heard of an attack on a bus in Forest Gate during the war but thought this took place elsewhere. This happened less than 5 minutes walk from where I live. With hindsight it is a pity that we didn't organise something locally last year to mark the 70th anniversary of the attack.

I posted here an account of a V2 attack in West Ham ward in 1945. My paternal grandfather (another John Gray) served in an anti-aircraft regiment during World War Two. I know he served in London during the Blitz and may have been stationed in Wanstead flats, which is also across the road from my home. I must do some research into his wartime service.

(picture of an actual V1 falling to the ground in London. Date and exact location unknown)