Bomb damage in Inglemere Road, Mitcham
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| Area | Mitcham |
|---|---|
| Copyright 1 | Mitcham Public Library |
| Picture Reference | Mit_War_2-5 |
| Original Format | Photo |
| Notes / History | Inglemere Road was hit by a High Explosive Bomb in 1940. It sheared off the side of the end house. The blast damage also made many of the neighbouring houses structurally unsound. Mitcham sustained heavy damage throughout the war owing to its relative proximity to Croydon Aerodrome. The airfield played an important part in Britain’s wartime defence and came under regular attack as a result. German bombers were forced to fly at great heights in order to dodge anti-aircraft fire. This made it difficult for them to identify their targets accurately. Many bombs wide of the mark, or were simply ditched in order to lighten the load of the aircraft before it returned to base. This bomb was probably the high explosive bomb shown on a map drawn up by The Bomb Sight project from the London WW2 bomb census, previously available only by viewing in the Reading Room at The National Archives. It was one of a total of 692 high explosive bombs which fell on the London Borough of Merton during the Blitz (from 7th October 1940 to 6th June 1941). A further 6 parachute mines, dropped by parachute from German aircraft, were also dropped on the borough during this period (bombsight.org). |
