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Fireman Wilfred Lawrence Francis
Auxiliary Fire Service Manchester then Southampton
from:128 Old Moat Lane, Withington
My uncle, Wilf Francis, born in 1907, had one eye due to a sporting accident. He was the timber stock manager with (I think) Montague Meyer in Manchester. Initially he joined the AFS, then was with the National Fire Service after they were formed. I have photos of him in NFS uniform with badge "NFS 27" on his breast pocket, and two with the rest of a crew, on (possibly) Manchester fire engine no. N 5972 which is possibly a Dennis.
After Manchester's blitzkrieg by the Luftwaffe abated, his sister, my Mother said that he was transferred to Southampton, where he continued until the War's end.
His two brothers were both officers in the RNVR and were variously involved in the Murmansk run, in Murmansk itself for 11 months, experimenting at Goven shipyard with turning LCTs into LCT(Rocket) ships prior to D-Day, Colombo, Ceylon, and the RN "Peggy" Force chasing the Japs out of Burma. One of them even married an SOE operative he brought back from France after D-Day. They later emigrated to Canada & never had children due to her dreadful experience. Both said that Uncle Wilfred had by far the worst of their war in the NFS, having been involved in some horrendous fires and rescues or recoveries.
I am now in my dotage but would love to know more about Uncle Wilfred Francis's war.
