GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

GWR Route: North Warwickshire Line

Birmingham Snow Hill Station: gwrbsh1132

View of the former restaurant in the Great Western Hotel which was used as a casuality clearing station on the morning after 20th November 1940. The raid lasted nine hours and over 5,000 bombs and parachute mines and 30,000 incendaries were dropped on the city. It was a fearful attack and came less than a week after the attack on Coventry which saw an even larger force attack the city. As ever there were feats of bravery some never recorded or acknowledged. One that was to AW Bailey, a volunteer from 6th Birmingham (Factories) Battalion - Later 26th Warwickshire (Birmingham) Battalion.

His citation for the George Medal read 'On the night of 19th November 1940 Volunteer Bailey was due to report for duty with BSA Guns Ltd's Home Guard at 9 30 pm hearing bombs, however, he arrived at about 7 pm and remained on duty helping to deal with incendiary bombs. At about 9 pm he reached the unit headquarters where he met an officer who called for volunteers to rescue people trapped under the debris of a building that had suffered direct hits by bombs. He first helped to rescue a Home Guard and later, with another Home Guard, got out two workmen from the same place.

He then went to the other side of the debris and helped out a man and then a girl. He then tried to crawl into the building through a hole but was obstructed by some concrete. On attempting to knock a hole through the concrete he found that a girder prevented further progress. An oxy-acetylene cutter was used to cut through the girder and a girl and four men were released one at a time. A fierce fire was burning inside and was being fought from outside but Bailey held up a piece of concrete with his raised arms for some time and was saturated with oil and water. He finally collapsed near the entrance to the hole and was taken home in an ambulance.

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