Poster explaining how to tackle fire bombs.

Poster explaining how to tackle fire bombs. © National Maritime Museum, London

Repro ID: H2852

Description: Incendiary or 'fire bombs' were dropped in order to start large fires. There were two varieties. The first was an oil bomb, a device in which flammable liquid was used with an explosive charge. The idea was to cause some blast damage with the explosive, but mainly to spray the burning liquid over a large area and cause widespread fires. As the Blitz progressed, oil bombs were superseded by a smaller and more intensely burning incendiary made of magnesium. These weighed only a kilogram, so could be dropped in their hundreds. Some were coupled with a small explosive charge which went off when the magnesium was well alight to spread the fire over a wider area. This poster advises the public on how to tackle fire bombs.

Creator: Unknown

Date: c.1940

Credit line: Newham Archives and Local Studies Library collection.