"Misfire, Unload!"

Re-upped the 2nd pic, imageshack is being a spaz and deleting pictures at random from my account.
 
Something similar happened to me many years ago while I was at University in the OTC. We were in the Scottish Borders, going through a gun drill using an old 25 pounder. The number 1 was already in the army but doing his studies and boasted about how easy it all was and a bore. We came to a simulated misfire(but using a live round). On the shout of 'misfire' instead of going through the proper procedure for unloading the round this guy slams opens the breach and the round falls out onto the ground. Silence. Six guys and the supervising officer stood there looking at the round. One guy ****** himself. After what seemed like an eternity the officer said "Congratulations, you just wiped out your crew. If any managed to survive they will have first degree burns over 70% or more of their body and be disfigured for life". The closest I came to death.
Later we fired the same round at some buildings on the range and watched the effect of the explosion.
 
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notice the black guy is still standing exactly as he was before the explosion, he's even still holding his stick.
 
I have fired a couple or so of these beasts. The Royal Artillery do not have "Platoons" they have a "Battery" Also a stage was missing from the images, after loading the shell, they also have to load the "Cartridge" which contain the charge to launch the shell. The HE (High Explosives) within the shell will not explode unless the shell is spinning at a certain rate and some have fuses which wait until the shell is buried in metal. So the explosion would be impressive, but not too powerful as it would only contain the firing "charge".
 
R124/LA420 said:
Well, I'm going by what he told me. he was the Platoon Sergeant (The West Somerset Yeomanry), and never forgave himself for surviving when all of the men under him didn't.


The incident happened in Dekkerswald, Holland 5th November 1944 :( , perhaps theres something on Google listed somewhere? (I've not looked)
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what was his name/title/regiment?

this is the only thing i could find that comes close to matching what your grandad described:

west somerset yeomanry, 4th nevember 1944 returning to dekkerswald

Tragedy married the end of our stay in Reek. On the afternoon of November 4th a party from our Battery had been visiting the baths in Nijmegen and had tea in the O.R.s canteen before returning. As they were leaving the canteen an A.P. bomb dropped from a daylight sneak raider fell between two of our waiting 3 tonners. Bdr. C. Sharp was killed and many injured by fragments. The injured were L/Sgt. Bullock, Bdr. Castle, L/Bdr. Lathwell, L/Bdr. Smith A., Gnrs. Dixon, Bishop, Biston, Smith B., Chambers, Maxey, and Dowling. Fortunately none of the injured were very seriously hurt but we were stunned at the loss of Bdr. Sharp.
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the somerset military museum also sheds no light onto the subject. just stating that during the course of WWII 34 members of the battalion died, and 8 were injured (these could have course been related to the incident, but being such a big incident you would have thought it would have merited a mention)
 
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Well, after a bit of digging I found a *.gif of the terrorist getting what he deserves from his own mortar that I mentioned previously.

insurgentmortarfi2.gif



I take it that this is OK to post, it doesn't show anything more graphic than the original pictures do. If it's not then please delete.
 
bringerofdecay said:
what was his name/title/regiment?

this is the only thing i could find that comes close to matching what your grandad described:

west somerset yeomanry, 4th nevember 1944 returning to dekkerswald



the somerset military museum also sheds no light onto the subject. just stating that during the course of WWII 34 members of the battalion died, and 8 were injured (these could have course been related to the incident, but being such a big incident you would have thought it would have merited a mention)
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Thanks for the reply.

His Name was Sgt E. Sims - 865422 - 374 Bty

My apologies, the date was infact 2 November 1944 not 5th as I posted earlier (sorry about that!) He was from Taunton in Somerset.

I do know that he was found by a group of Nuns and nursed back to relative health by them prior to his return to active duty, the "facts" I posted may be incorrect, but, I have no reason to dispute what's been told to me he certainly wasn't the sort to embellish anything.


Information taken from

"The Adventures of The West Somerset Yeomanry"

"From D Day to VE Day"

By Major J.R.S. Peploe, R.A.


Any further light you could shed on this would be most interesting to me, not to mention my Grandmother who is still alive and would , possibly, like to know more.

My Grandfather (understandably) talked very little of this incident and returned from the War "A changed Man" in the words of my Gran. :(

Thank you in advance. :)
 
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R124/LA420 said:
Thanks for the reply.

His Name was Sgt E. Sims - 865422 - 374 Bty

My apologies, the date was infact 2 November 1944 not 5th as I posted earlier (sorry about that!) He was from Taunton in Somerset.

I do know that he was found by a group of Nuns and nursed back to relative health by them prior to his return to active duty, the "facts" I posted may be incorrect, but, I have no reason to dispute what's been told to me he certainly wasn't the sort to embellish anything.


Information taken from

"The Adventures of The West Somerset Yeomanry"

"From D Day to VE Day"

By Major J.R.S. Peploe, R.A.


Any further light you could shed on this would be most interesting to me, not to mention my Grandmother who is still alive and would , possibly, like to know more.

My Grandfather (understandably) talked very little of this incident and returned from the War "A changed Man" in the words of my Gran. :(

Thank you in advance. :)
Click to expand...

is your nans name tracey sims?

and what was his first name?
and did he fight in WWI aswell?
 
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bringerofdecay said:
is your nans name tracey sims?

and what was his first name?
and did he fight in WWI aswell?
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No, rather not say as she's still around & its not for me to put her name on 't web tbh. - E-mail in trust if you want me to give you her name that way?

His first name was Ernest (Ern to friends & family)

To my knowledge, he didn't fight in WWI (would have been too young)
 
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