Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past Wirral History Decontamination units

The beginning of WW2 brought about many problems for the British government on how to protect the civilian population.
Lessons learnt from the first world war it was highly expected that gas and chemical weapons would be used by the German air force and dropped indiscriminately on the civilian population.
It was also expected that food stocks and water supplies would also be sabotaged.
During WW1 the use of gas on the battlefields and its effects took the combatants totally by surprise and the government were determined to protect the population the best they could.
By 1940, 38 million gas masks were distributed and decontamination squads were set up by councils should the unthinkable happen, thankfully it never did.
Also lessons learnt from WW1 was the sabotaging of food stuffs, one example was German agents infecting horses and other animals in America destined for Great Britain with Glander (a specific, contagious, and inoculable disease of the horse family (equidae),but also liable to be contracted by other mammals, including man; it is due to the entrance and growth in the body of the glanders bacillus Pseudomonas (Actinobacillus) mallei (formerly known as Pfeifferella mallei).
To combat such activities getting in to the food chain, Food decontamination squads were set up, one such squad was based at the Oval, Bebington, and used a cattle shed within the grounds as their HQ. mainly volunteers, they were ready and prepared to deal with food contamination, deliberate or accidental.

The photos below are, council workers on a training exercise and the Bebington Food Decontamination Squad.

Good post bert thanks.
i live by the oval so that was facinating.

Thanks Movingtables, interesting is the cattle shed that the food unit used was also used as a temporary morgue after the heavy bombing in March 1941.

Interesting post Bert, I'd never heard of that squad before. Thanks.