RAF Fauld explosion

{{short description|1944 military accident in Staffordshire, England}}

{{Infobox military installation

|name = RAF Fauld explosion

|location = Staffordshire, England, UK

|pushpin_map = United Kingdom Staffordshire

|pushpin_map_caption = Location in Staffordshire

|image = Fauld.jpg

|caption = Aerial view of the crater and damage to the surrounding area caused by the explosion, taken by the RAF on 4 December 1944

|coordinates = {{Coord|52|50|50|N|01|43|50|W|display=inline,title}}

}}

The RAF Fauld explosion was a military accident which occurred at 11:11{{nbsp}}am on Monday, 27 November 1944 at the RAF Fauld underground munitions storage depot in Staffordshire, England. It was one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history and the largest on UK soil.

Between {{convert|3500|and|4000|tonne}} of ordnance exploded, mostly high explosives. The explosion crater has a depth of {{convert|100|ft|m}} and a maximum width of {{convert|1007|ft|m}} although different sources have exaggerated this size. The crater is still visible just south of Fauld, to the east of Hanbury, Staffordshire. It is now known as the Hanbury Crater.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/stoke/content/articles/2008/08/15/hanbury_crater_feature.shtml |title=World's largest-ever explosion (almost) |first=Mark |last=Rowe |publisher=BBC Stoke |date=29 August 2008 |access-date=1 April 2019 |archive-date=23 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223192031/http://www.bbc.co.uk/stoke/content/articles/2008/08/15/hanbury_crater_feature.shtml |url-status=live }}{{cite journal |url=http://www.emgs.org.uk/files/local_geology/15(2)_fauld_crater.pdf |title=Landmark of geology in the East Midlands: The explosion crater at Fauld |first=Tony |last=Waltham |journal=Mercian Geologist |date=2001 |volume=15 |issue=2 |page=123-125 |access-date=1 April 2019 |archive-date=6 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806160137/http://www.emgs.org.uk/files/local_geology/15(2)_fauld_crater.pdf |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/Bygones-Book-coincides-70th-anniversary-giant/story-23049328-detail/story.html |title=Bygones: Book coincides with 70th anniversary of giant explosion at RAF Fauld, near Burton |first=Jane |last=Goddard |newspaper=Derby Telegraph |date=6 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711172049/http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/Bygones-Book-coincides-70th-anniversary-giant/story-23049328-detail/story.html |archive-date=11 July 2015 |access-date=1 April 2019}}

A nearby reservoir containing {{convert|450000|m3}} of water was obliterated in the incident, along with several buildings including a complete farm. Flooding caused by the destruction of the reservoir added to the damage caused by the explosion.{{cite magazine |last=Reed |first=John |date=1977 |title=Largest Wartime Explosions: 21 Maintenance Unit, RAF Fauld, Staff. November 27, 1944 |magazine=After the Battle |location=Essex |publisher=Battle of Britain International Limited |issue=18 |pages=35–40 |issn=0306-154X}}

A combination of the power of the explosion and wartime censorship in the UK means that the exact death toll is uncertain; it is believed that about 70 people died in the explosion and resulting flood.

Cause

File:Raf fauld tunnel bombs.jpg

The cause of the disaster was not made clear at the time, as the British government did not want enemy governments and military to know the extent of the disaster. There had been staff shortages, a management position had remained empty for a year, and 189 inexperienced Italian prisoners of war were working in the mines at the time of the accident.

There were also equipment shortages, a lack of worker training, multiple agencies in the mine resulting in a lack of an organised chain of command, and pressure from British government and military to increase work rate for the war effort which resulted in safety regulations being overlooked.{{cite book |title=Voices From The Explosion |first=Valerie |last=Hardy |publisher=Second Edition - Woldscot |date=2019 |isbn=978-1-5272-2969-3}} In 1974, it was announced that the cause of the explosion was probably a site worker removing a detonator from a live bomb using a brass chisel, rather than a wooden batten, resulting in sparks. An eyewitness testified that he had seen a worker using brass chisels, in direct contravention of the regulations in force.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/98/a6370698.shtml |title=WW2 People's War – War Memories – with a song and dance and a huge explosion |publisher=BBC |date=24 October 2005 |access-date=1 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121112071755/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/98/a6370698.shtml |archive-date=12 November 2012 |url-status=dead}}

Effects

No. 21 Maintenance Unit RAF Bomb Storage dump consisted of old gypsum mine workings which had been made into storage for a variety of ordnance; in addition to shells and bombs, the specifications included several types of weapons and up to 500 million rounds of small arms ammunition.{{cite web |url=http://www.helenlee.co.uk/tutbury/fauld.html |title=The Fauld Explosion |website=Tutbury: Local history and information |access-date=10 August 2020 |archive-date=8 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108113720/http://www.helenlee.co.uk/tutbury/fauld.html |url-status=live }} Up to {{convert|4000|tonne}} exploded, including {{convert|3500|tonne}} of bombs packed with high explosives. At 11:15 hours on 27 November 1944, two huge explosions took place at the dump. Eyewitnesses reported seeing two distinct columns of black smoke in the form of a mushroom cloud ascending several thousand feet, and a blaze at the foot of the column. According to the commanding officer of 21 M.U., Group Captain Storrar, an open dump of incendiary bombs caught fire and it was allowed to burn itself out without damage or casualties. Property was damaged within a radius of {{convert|3/4|mi}} of the crater.Ministry of Home Security report File RE. 5/5i region IX.

Debris and damage occurred to all property within a circle extending for {{convert|1420|yd}}. Upper Castle Hayes Farm completely disappeared and Messrs. Peter Ford's lime and gypsum works to the north of the village and Purse cottages were demolished. The lime works was destroyed by the flooding after the destruction of the reservoir dam. Hanbury Fields Farm, Hare Holes Farm and also Croft Farm with adjacent cottages were all extensively damaged. Debris also damaged Hanbury village. The crater was {{convert|300|yd}} by {{convert|233|yd}} in length and {{convert|100|ft}} deep, covering {{convert|12|acre}}.

Casualties

At the time, no precise records were kept monitoring the exact number of workers at the facility. While the exact death toll is uncertain as a result of this, it appears that about 70 people died in the explosion. The official report stated that 90 were killed, missing or injured,{{UK National Archives ID|id=C2199567|name= AIR 17/10 (prev. RE5/5/76)}} including:

26 killed or missing at the RAF dump—divided between RAF personnel, civilian workers and some Italian prisoners of war who were working there—5 of whom were gassed by toxic fumes; 10 were also severely injured. Six are buried in military graves.
37 killed (drowned) or missing at Peter Ford & Sons gypsum mine and plaster mill, and surrounding countryside; 12 also injured.
Approximately 7 farm workers at the nearby Upper Castle Hayes Farm.
One diver was killed during search and rescue operations.

The inscription on the memorial stone that was erected at the crater in November 1990, lists a total of 70 names of people who died as a result of the explosion, 18 of these names are people who are still missing and presumed dead.

Two hundred cattle were also killed by the explosion. Some live cattle were removed from the vicinity, but were found dead the following morning.

Aftermath

File:RAF Fauld Explosion memorial.jpg gives the number of victims as 70]]

A relief fund organised by the local people made payments to victims and their families until 1959.

Much of the storage facility was annihilated by the explosion, but the site itself continued to be used by the RAF for munitions storage until 1966, when No. 21 Maintenance Unit was disbanded. Following France's withdrawal from NATO's integrated military structure in 1966,{{cite web |title= Member countries |url= http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/topics_52044.htm#About |publisher= NATO |date= 9 July 2009 |access-date= 15 July 2009 |archive-date= 6 January 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200106131433/https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/topics_52044.htm#About |url-status= live }} the site was used by the United States Army between 1967 and 1973 to store US ammunition previously stored in France.

By 1979, the site was fenced off, and the area is now covered with over 150 species of trees and wildlife. Access is restricted as a significant amount of explosives are still buried deep in the site; the UK government has deemed their removal too expensive to be feasible.{{cite book|last=Bell|first=David|title=Staffordshire Tales of Murder & Mystery|publisher=Countryside Books|year=2005|page=78|chapter=8|isbn=1-85306-922-1}}

On 13 September 1990, 46 years after the initial incident, it was announced that a memorial stone was to be erected to commemorate those who died, to be paid for by the public, as Hanbury Parish Council did not have the necessary funds. The stone used for the memorial was donated by the Italian government and flown to the United Kingdom on an RAF plane.{{cite news|title=Blast memorial go-ahead after long campaign|work=Staffordshire Sentinel|date=13 September 1990|access-date=13 July 2020|url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000525/19900913/054/0006|via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription}} It was unveiled on 25 November 1990.{{cite web |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/13566 |title=War Memorials Register: Fauld Crater Memorial |publisher=Imperial War Museums |access-date=9 August 2020 |archive-date=9 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009025739/https://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/13566 |url-status=live }} A second memorial was dedicated on the 70th anniversary of the explosion, 27 November 2014. A tourist trail leads to the crater from the Cock Inn pub in Hanbury, which was damaged by debris from the explosion.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-stoke-staffordshire-30218324 |title=Fauld explosion 70th anniversary: New memorial unveiled |publisher=BBC News |date=27 November 2014 |access-date=10 August 2020 |archive-date=14 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201014183928/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-stoke-staffordshire-30218324 |url-status=live }}

The maintenance unit was the subject of several paintings under the collective title "The Bomb Store" by David Bomberg, who was briefly employed as a war artist by the War Ministry in 1943.{{cite book |title=David Bomberg |first=Richard |last=Cork |publisher=Yale University Press |date=1986 |isbn=978-0300038279}}

{{gallery|mode=packed|width=250

|File:RAF Fauld explosion sign warning of unexploded munitions and hazard.jpg|Sign warning of unexploded munitions and hazard posed by the crater

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RAF Fauld explosion

Cause

Effects

Casualties

Aftermath

See also

References

Further reading