| Last updated : 26/4/2008 |
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| V1's and V2's London SE14 New Cross |
| The London SE14 area suffered badly during the blitz. During the V weapon attacks it was to have the dubious distinction of having the highest casualty rate per missile of any of the South London areas studied (and probably the highest in London). 14.30 people died per missile. This hideous total was as a result of 15 V1 Flying Bombs which killed 21 and 5 V2's Rockets which killed 265. This is a very distinct pattern. The V1's in SE14 actually had a fairly low casualty rate.This was partly due to the fact the a number fell on the extensive Railway property. This was serious in itself but less likely to kill civilians in their homes. Also the Telegraph Hill part of SE14 is made of of very large low density Victorian Houses which would also have reduced the fatalites. Not so with the V2 Rockets. There were 3 terrible incidents . Firstly on the 1st November 1944 36 died when a V2 exploded at the junction of St Donatts and Shardloes Road. On the 25th November came the Woolworths tragedy when 168 died. The worst single incident of the V weapon attacks. Then on the 7th March 53 died when a Rocket hit Southern Railway flats at Folkestone Gardens. in Trundleys Road. In common with the adjacent districts of SE4 (Brockley) SE15 (Peckham), SE16, (Rotherhithe) and SE8 (Deptford) , SE14 was hideously battered during World War Two. The Blitz had inflicted numerous scars as Nazi bombers had missed their targets over Docklands. Now during the V1 and V2 Attacks whole swathes of the district were decimated. Driving round parts of Deptford and New Cross it is striking how little pre-war housing remains and this is very indicative of the damage in this area. Scars are clearly seen at the site of the Woolworths disaster where the building has been re-built and temporary post war buildings can still be found opposite. At Shardloes road a large local authority development clearly occupies the space left by the demolition of Victorian terraces. At Folkestone gardens nothing remains and the site has been left cleared as a park. |