THREAD/Today marks the 79th anniversary of the Coventry Blitz on 14 November 1940 and the focus will rightly be on those terrible events. But down here in London, in my own neighbourhood, the Luftwaffe was still active and today marks the 79th anniversary of a local tragedy.

In common with many London schools, the children of @Invicta_primary in Blackheath had been evacuated to the relative safety of the countryside and the school had been given over to the Auxiliary Fire Service as Fire Station 54X. The London Blitz had started on 7 September 1940..

..and the firemen (1940 ranks) based here had already seen plenty of action. FM Arthur Grant had been awarded the George Medal for his actions on 13 September 1940 in carrying a bomb from the main hall of the school building, then in use as a mess room, into the playground.

He then covered the bomb with sandbags to reduce the impact of any explosion. When it did subsequently explode, the damage was minimal, thanks to Arthur Grant's bravery. The night of 14 November was proving to be a quiet one but at 19:30 the sirens sounded.

The first shout of the evening was at a nearby factory by the Thames where a HE bomb had fallen but this hadn't required the attendance of the men from Invicta Road. Shortly before 21:20, unknown to the men and women in the school buildings, a parachute mine drifted silently down

It caught in trees adjacent to the school building and exploded, devastating the school buildings and trapping the firemen inside. Rescue services and firemen came from all around the local area to help free their trapped colleagues and work went on well into the following day

Sadly, twelve firemen and three civilians, including the school caretaker, Charles White were also killed. One of the firemen who died was Arthur Grant, who had not had the chance to be awarded his George Medal, which had been gazetted the previous day.

Today, the firefighters from @lfbgreenwich will pay tribute to their colleagues from 1940 together with the children from the school in an informal ceremony this afternoon. We'll also be delighted to welcome the family of Harry Dixon who will be visiting for the first time./END