WESTON residents have been reacting to a photo of Wadham Street in ruins after being bombed in June 1942.

The black and white image was posted in the We Grew Up In Weston-super-Mare Facebook group. 

On the evening of June 28, in clear and warm conditions, German planes soared above Weston, and at just after 1am they began their assault on the town.

Chaos ensued as a mix of high-explosive bombs and incendiary weapons were dropped on the town.

The incendiary devices, which were made from magnesium, were designed to penetrate through roofs before exploding and starting a raging fire.

On June 29, the bombers returned at around 2am, and once again the town suffered a battering – with Orchard Street in particular being devastated by high-explosive bombs.

Writing alongside the photo, the poster said: "I'm unsure what the main building bombed out in the picture was back then. I know it went on to be demolished shortly after being bombed, for where it existed to later on become a tax office and is now student accommodation.

"Whatever it was looks quite ornate and much like The Stable as we still see it now.

"The Blakehay Theatre (then Wadham Street Baptist Church) on the left was gutted by the bombing, but was restored.

"The Blitz was one of the Baedeker raids, which were targeting tourist destinations well-known to people on the continent who followed the famous Baedeker guide books.

"In total 102 people were killed in the raids, while 400 were injured."

Some residents even remember the incident: "I was two months old when the bombing took place in Weston and I lived in Prospect Place. Our house was destroyed."

Another added: "My mother’s house got bombed and the only one in Moorland Road too. So sad."

One person didn't even know about this part of the town's history. They said: "Never knew Weston was bombed!"

In his book Weston At War: 1939-45, historian John Crockford-Hawley wrote of the damage wrought upon the town.

It reads: “After two nights’ continuous bombing, the full brunt of destruction was everywhere to be seen.

“Buildings lay smouldering amidst dust and smoke. Walls tottered on the brink of collapse and a weary population wandered around bewildered or exhausted."