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Hi
I wonder if you could help me please I am looking for an article in a Luton Beds News Paper
V2 Bomb fell on Biscot Road Luton Beds WW 2
Thankyou
Olive

From Google..........

At 9:50 AM on Monday November 6th 1944, a single V2 rocket detonated in the Commer
Car Factory canteen block in Biscot Road, killing 19 people, injuring 196 and damaging
1,524 houses. As common with all V2 rockets, there was no air-raid warning since the
radar technology of the day was unable to detect these rockets as they followed a ballistic
trajectory via space, and were travelling faster than the speed of sound at impact.
The explosion caused a crater 30 ft wide and 12 ft deep. Numbers 77 – 83 & 58 – 68
Biscot Road were destroyed, and houses up to 1.5 miles away were damaged. Brick dust
from the pulverised houses drifted and settled in Wardown Park. If the rocket had landed 5
minutes later, the canteen would have been filled with people taking their 10 AM break.
As common with all V2 explosions, all reporting of the explosion was censored and the
rumour started that it was the result of a works gas explosion and not a rocket. Only after
the war was the truth released.
V2 rockets were a development of the V1 Doodle-bug. They travelled at up to 3000 mph,
contained 2000 lbs of explosive and had a range of 150 miles. V2s were first used against
the UK in September 1944.
A descendant of the V2, the Saturn V (five) rocket, carried humanity onto the surface of
the moon since both rockets were designed and inspired by the German scientist Werner Von Braun.


https://www.lutonculture.com/uploads/documents/1333365604_Bombsitetrailmapsandtext.pdf

I have just googled V2 Bomb, Biscot Rad, Luton and there are a few sites covering it. One of he sites states that all V2 strikes were censored and that a rumour was started that the explosion was caused by gas and that it was only after the war that the truth came out.

This might also be of interest to you........

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/83/a8099283.shtml

Thankyou for your reply
I wondered if the local News Paper reported on it
Anyway of finding out Please
Olive

You could try Bedfordshire Archives or Luton Library. However, as Londonbelle has suggested, the cause of the explosion may not have been officially acknowledged until after the war.

If you're looking for the names of people killed, try the Civilian Deaths on the CWGC site.

http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead.aspx?cpage=1&sort=dateofdeath&order=desc
( Civilians listed as having died on 6 Nov 1944)

Link to Luton library, as suggested by DetEcTive:

http://tinyurl.com/hw2byzz

Looks as if you would have to go in person.
General contact details: https://www.luton.gov.uk/pages/contactus.aspx


Bedfordshire Archives have an enquiry and research service:

http://tinyurl.com/zewsr66

Hi
Thankyou for your reply
I will contact try and contact Luton Library as you suggested as I live to far away to go in person
Bye for now
Olive

The Commonwealth War Graves site has the list of the 19 civilians killed that day in Luton.

http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead.aspx?cpage=1

Hi
I have looked on C W GC org
And was surprised to find a list of civilians killed that day in Luton
Thankyou agian
Olive