TNA ADM 199 790

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smallest for enery planes.
Headquarters to investigate the local situation.
It heavily to enbark # small
The town was half on fire, the streets being littered
and the the beaches
with wreckage of all kinds, and every window was smashed.
by The method, however, proved
Great palls of smoke from the oil depots and refineries
so that 1t was used
enveloped the docks and town itself. On our way up to
couling along the beaches
the Bastion we had to take shelter from two more raids
to
the
by enemy bombers, the bombs from the last of which fell
unpleasantly close. There were a number of British troops
in the town and we passed & good few dead and wounded in
the streets - - evidently the victims of these air raids.
I held a meeting with Brigadier Parminter, Colonel
Whitfield, Area Commandant, and Commander Henderson, B.N.L.O.
After this meeting the pier and beach parties were at once
organised, told off and dispersed.
the
At 1900 I took over as S.N.O. Dunkirk,
2005. The following signal made to V.A. Dover :-
"There
"Port continuously bombed all day and on fire.
Embarkation possible only from beaches East of
harbour. Send all ships there. Am ordering
WOLFHOUND to load there and sail."
V.A. Dover had intended to keep a destroyer in day
Dunkirk as W/T link, but I decided on arrival that this was
not possible 80 ordered WOLFHOUND to sail.
the
the
Night of 27th May.
only
Signal 1958/27 to V.A. Dover :- tobeaches
"Please send every available craft, East Her
of Dunkirk immediately. Evacuation tomorrow
night is problematical.
The naval party were spread out along the beach to
act as police.
Troops in the district were directed to the beach
and ordered to disperse along the sands so as to afford