Kinmel Bay veteran’s Second World War escape revisited

Jun 18 2009 North Wales Weekly News

Veteran’s wartime escape revisited

A KINMEL BAY veteran who bravely battled against the Nazis has this week commemorated the anniversary of one of Britain’s worst wartime tragedies.

Glyn James, of Trem-y-Dyffryn, was one of thousands of soldiers affected when German bombers destroyed the troop ship RMS Lancastria on June 17 1940, 69 years ago this week.

“I vividly remember the whole event. We were among the soldiers trying to get on, and we were turned away because it was simply too full, and as we walked away, five or six bombers just bombed it to pieces, destroying it in a huge explosion. When you witness something like that, you don’t know what the hell is going on,” said 90-year-old Mr James, who served as a Non Commissioned Officer for the Royal Army Service Corps.

“Everybody was very afraid of what was happening, but you get to a point when you’ve absorbed so much that your brain just can’t take it anymore, and goes onto autopilot. We hadn’t eaten for days and were completely exhausted, so in many ways it almost seemed like a dream.”

The ship was docked at Saint Nazaire in occupied France to assist fleeing French and British soldiers, but was destroyed by German bombers shortly before it could complete its voyage. More than 4,000 were killed during the bombings, making it the single worst loss of life for British troops during the Second World War but it remains a largely forgotten tragedy.

Mr James was stationed with the Royal Army Service Corps in Hauvillers, near the French town of Epernay, before the event.

After witnessing the ship’s destruction, Mr James and his men commandeered a local fishing boat for the trip back to the UK, where he already been listed as Killed In Action. He says that he and his men were so exhausted by the ideal that they did not even know which port they had landed at.

david.simister