Evening star., 1940-08-28
Six of Attackers
Shot Down; Bottle
Lusts 30 Minutes
BY the Associated Press.

by t0e Associated Press.
I, LONDON, Aug. %. - German
bombers smashed heavily at the
Kent coast and the Thames estuary
leading to London today, and British
defenders were declared to have
shot down at least Is of the raiders.
An official British announcement
acknowledged heavy attacks"
Qn Berlin. the Germans
claimed to have bombed an un-
designated British airport at the
mouth of the Thames, leaving "a
scene of devastation" They de-
clared that eight British and
three German planes were shot
down in that single engagement0
Two wedge formations-one of 18
and the other of 81 planes-sought
to break Londons outer ring of de-
fenses.
Both formations were broken up,
the British said. One savage 30
minute battle ragged from middle
Kent to the Thames. The residen-
tial section of town was bombed.
Although an apartment house was
hit, and glass and shell pieces scat
tered thick over the town, only three
persons were injured
Roar Over Folkestone.
The first formation of l8 bombers
with fighter escorts roared over
Folkestore, on the southeast coast,
and began dropping bombs inland.
Spitf1res and Hurricanes which en-
gagged them were reported to have
brought down two of this group and
crippled another.
At least 10 persons were reported
killed and one German plane
brought down by anti-aircraft in
night raids which ranged from Scot
land to Wales. causing two air raid
alarms in London and hitting par
ticularly four towns in the southeast
and northwest.
Great numbers of incendiary and
explosive bombs were dropped, but
the government said damage was
done only to houses, and that the
attacks were "indiscriminate.
No casualties were caused in Lon
don. In one northeast town 70 per-
sons had to be given shelter after
bombs smashed a housing project.
Dogfght Over Town.
Two of the q German bombers and
one of the escorting Messerschmitt
fighters were shot down in a series
of dogfghts over a southeast town.
One German bomber was seen to
crash into the sea several miles
from land and another was shot
down by Spitfire into the sea after
jettisoning its bombs while only so
feet above water. Two survivors
were brought ashore by ifeboats.
Three women were injured by a
bomb which hit an apartment build
ing during the fights. Rescuers dug
for other casualties.
Streets of the residential section
were covered with broken glass and
pieces of she'll but the residents
had taken shelter.
London had two alarms, one of 212
hours just before midnight, and
the second of less than an hour
shortly after midnight Few planes
were heard and anti-aircraft activ-
1ty was light.
1t was the second successive night
of heavy bombing through the coun-
try, the action far outstripping day
light attacks of yesterday and ap-
proximating that of Monday night,
which was the heaviest night assault
of the war.
Incendiary Bombs Used.
From an increasing number of
communities came reports of in
dividual towns having "the biggest
attack of the war;" and the wide
spread use of incendiary bombs in
dicated the Germans may be en-
ploying new tactic.
The bombing was particularly
heavy on two towns in the southeast
and on two points in the north of
England, the Ministries of Air and
Home Security said in joint COM
munique this morning, with damage
done to house property and casual
ties caused, including some per-
sons killed"
Casualties were lighter elsewhere
The British reported downing one
bomber by anti-aircraft guns on the
coast.
Incendiary bombs fell everywhere,
but the British reported bringing
their fires under control quickly.
The Germans have been making in
creasing use of the gasoline bomb
which consists simply of drum of
gasoline and a mechanism to ig-
mite it.
One of these bombs fell in an
open space in the center of a South
England town. Explosive bombs
dropped in the towns residential
suburbs.
Incendiary bombs hit two churches
in one southeast town, homes in
another, fell in flower gardens in
Northeast Scotland town and fell in
(See LONDON, Page A-60