NAVAL ZEPPELIN L3
KLt Hans Fritz

Bomb 1: Having crossed the Norfolk coast between Happisburgh and Winterton, L3 dropped parachute flares as it navigated its way from Martham towards Yarmouth. Along the way, it dropped a first incendiary which landed in a waterlogged paddock on farmer George Humphrey’s land at Little Ormesby, near St Michael’s Church. Apart from a small crater, a foot and a half wide it did no damage.

Bomb 2: The first bomb to hit Yarmouth was another incendiary which fell on the lawn of Norwood Suffling’s house at 6, Albermarle Road, near the Wellesley recreation ground, gouging a crater two feet wide.

Bomb 3: The first explosive bomb struck the pavement at the back of 78, Crown Road, but failed to explode. It was recovered by reservists and later defused. Aside from slicing off part of a gatepost, it too caused more alarm than damage.

Bomb 4: The most destructive of all the bombs to fall on Yarmouth, the fourth bomb burst with shattering effect in the thickly-populated working class area of St Peter’s Plain, near the Drill Hall. Spinster Martha Taylor and shoemaker Sam Smith were killed instantly and two more people were injured. The explosion blew out the front of St Peter’s Villa and so seriously damaged nearby Pestell’s Buildings that they had to be demolished. Many other homes suffered blast damage.

Bomb 5: Another explosive bomb, this one failed to detonate and was recovered from a stable owned by butcher William Mays in Garden Lane, near South Quay.

Bomb 6: The sixth missile crashed to earth, trailing a “huge, fiery flame”, outside the First and Last tavern in Southgate Road, by the Fish Wharf. Miraculously, there were no casualties, although a number of people who were nearby had narrow escapes. Damage was confined to broken windows and a hole torn in the road.

Bomb 7: A third incendiary to be dropped fell between two vessels and caused some damage to Beeching’s South Dock.

Bomb 8: The third unexploded bomb of the night, it bounced off the Stone Quay at Trinity Wharf, narrowly missing a sentry and a crane turntable, before plunging harmlessly into the river.

Bomb 9: Another explosive bomb, this one fell behind the Fish Wharf, causing extensive damage. As well as wrecking a dockside restaurant, it burst a water main, shattered windows and removed roof tiles. Incredibly, though, only one person was slightly hurt by flying glass.

Bomb 10: Shrapnel from this bomb riddled the steam drifter Piscatorial owned by the hapless Harry Eastick, who had already lost one boat in the war to a mine.

Bomb 11: The last bomb to fall during L3’s 10-minute attack, it struck the road running along the back of the racecourse grandstand on South Denes, killing a dog and demolishing a fence.

NAVAL ZEPPELIN L4
KLt Magnus von Platen-Hallermund

After crossing the coast near Bacton around 8.30pm, L4 followed a meandering course along the shores of North Norfolk, which its captain had taken to be in the region of the Humber estuary, before steering south for King’s Lynn. In the course of its confused passage, some eight incendiary and explosive bombs were dropped.

Bombs 1 and 2: Two incendiaries were dropped over Sheringham. The first hit a cottage in Jordan’s Yard, Windham Street, passing through the roof, bedroom and kitchen ceiling before burying itself in the floor. The force was such that a girl sitting in a chair was thrown to the floor, but luckily the missile failed to explode and no one was injured. The second incendiary fell on open ground in Priory Road, leaving a small crater.

Bombs 3 and 4: Passing over Thornham, a third incendiary was dropped on the Green, before the airship headed out to sea, only to cut inland again at Brancaster, where a fourth bomb was dropped near the church, approximately 150 yards from a Red Cross hospital.

Bomb 5: Some accounts state that the first explosive bomb to be dropped by L4 fell in a field about 300 yards from a wireless station near Hunstanton.

Bombs 6 and 7: Two bombs fell at Heacham. One hit a cottage in Lord’s Lane, tearing away bricks and tiles from a wash-house before demolishing a water tub and another came down in a field without exploding. There were no injuries sustained.

Bomb 8: In the most controversial incident of the raid, L4 continued southwards, dropping a bomb at Snettisham which damaged the church, giving rise to the unfounded suggestion that the Germans were targeting the nearby royal estate at Sandringham.

Bomb 9: From Snettisham, the airship passed over Gaywood to begin its attack on Lynn. The first bomb fell in a field at the rear of Tennyson Avenue breaking a number of windows.

Bomb 10: The next one landed on allotments north of the recreation ground.

Bomb 11: The most destructive of all the bombs smashed into the closely-packed terraces in Bentinck Street. Many homes were wrecked and among a number of casualties were two dead: 14-year-old Percy Goate and Alice Gazley.

Bomb 12: Terraced homes in the area of East Street and Albert Street suffered heavy damage and, though a number of people were trapped, thankfully there were no fatalities.

Bomb 13: The seventh bomb reportedly fell in a garden near the docks, causing no damage.

Bomb 14: This bomb wrecked the engine house and knocked out the hydraulic system which operated the Alexandra Dock gates.

Bomb 15: Falling in an allotment near Cresswell Street, the bomb wrecked fences and shattered windows but without causing injuries.

Bomb 16: L4’s parting shot and the last bomb to fall during the January 19 raid, it plunged through the roof of the Savage family’s home in Cresswell Street, but, fortunately, failed to detonate.