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Today we find ourselves in South Devon on a trip for our youngest Billy and his friend to a Film set as extras. ( More of this in Part two ) With over 8 Hours 'Free Time' , Sharon and i head to Start Bay and to Torcross, as she'd never been to this part before. On a lovely Tuesday, we just happen to be visiting Torcross, as Today is the 71st Year anniversary of Operation 'Tiger' ...28th April 1944.
WW2 evacuation and Exercise Tiger
In late 1943 Torcross was evacuated, along with many other villages in the South Hams area, to make way for 15,000 allied troops who needed the area to practise for the D-Day landings.
In the early hours of 28 April 1944 a tragic incident happened during Exercise Tiger: nine German torpedo boats (Schnellboote), alerted by heavy radio traffic, intercepted a three-mile-long convoy of vessels travelling from the Isle of Portland to Slapton Sands to undertake landing rehearsals for D Day. Two Tank landing ships (LST) were sunk in the engagement and 749 American servicemen died. Poor communications led to badly-timed shelling on the beach, killing about 300 more men. Over 1,000 lives were lost over the course of the operation.
A Sherman amphibious tank and several plaques stand at Torcross car park between Slapton Ley and the beach as memorials to the men who lost their lives. The operation to salvage the tank from the shallow waters of Start Bay was financed by Ken Small, a Torcross hotelier, and was completed in 1984. I hope you enjoy this video...Steve.~.
Filmed on a Panasonic HC X920.....all hand-held.
Music:- 'A December Sunset' by Collins,Lautenbach and Ripoll.
6 сен 2024
