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https://accounts.ulster.ac.uk/repo24/files/original/268d3d6fe57cea8e7beba168724ddd7f.pdf
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Sandra Aranha
Account of the IRA bomb on Ebury Bridge Road, London, on 10 October
1981
I was in Ebury Bridge Road that fateful day on 10 October 1981. The service
station across the road from where the van containing the bomb had been
positioned, was being renovated and when the bomb went off, my first thought
was that the service station had exploded. It wasn't until soldiers from
CheIsea Barracks showed up a few minutes after the explosion that I realised
it was an IRA [Irish Republican Army] bomb.
I worked at a travel agency called ‘Capricorn Travel’ and we had two offices in
the small strip of shops – one at No. 37 and another at No. 27 Ebury Bridge
Road – directly opposite ‘The Rising Sun’ pub.
In fact, that morning around 9.00 am on my way to work, I met John, one of
the proprietors of the pub. He was helping a couple of guys to push the van
(which had the day before been parked on the corner of St. Barnabas Street
beside the pub), to its final position on Ebury Bridge Road.
After being showered in shattered glass and other debris, and flung across
our office floor at No. 27, I was outdoors in seconds and tried to help as much
as I could. I first checked on my colleague at No. 37, the closest shop to the
van. Even though he was in terrible shock and had sustained some cuts as a
result of the office window shattering inwards, he was very lucky to be
shielded by the walls of the building.
I think Nora Field passed away on the footpath. I recall holding her hand for a
moment or two but then went to assist a soldier that was in great distress, off
the targeted bus. He was bleeding profusely from the head (his scalp had
blown off) and when the ambulances arrived, I helped him (and his scalp) into
one.
It was so sad to hear of John Breslin's death; he sometimes washed our cars
for a few extra pounds in his pocket. I'm pretty sure he was there that
morning to collect our car keys for the same purpose and I recall seeing him
and bidding him good morning just a few yards from the van just before the
explosion.
I recall running to the hairdresser, which was the first shop in the row at the
opposite end from No 37, and after assisting the hairdresser and her elderly
women clients to get away from the mayhem, I grabbed as many towels as I
could and handed them out to the injured that needed them.
In the aftermath of the incident I was one of the people interviewed by ITN for
a news item broadcast on 11 October 1981.
�These days, I still struggle sometimes from the aftermath of that horrible
Saturday morning and wonder how Nora and John's family have coped with
their loss. It's good to see that sites like CAIN try to keep their memory alive.
As a 21 year old Indian born Australian, I had no relatives in the UK at the
time, so felt quite alone. For ages afterwards I ducked under my desk at the
slightest loud noise in the street.
I was in a car accident in 2006 – someone had back-ended me – and when
the rear window of my car shattered all over me, my first thought was I had
been in yet another bomb attack. Soon after the bombing in 1981, I
developed a hideous nervous eczema and after the shattering glass incident
of my car accident, I got exactly the same eczema once again.
I now live in Byron Bay, NSW Australia and am a stand-up comedian and
columnist.
Sandra Aranha; Account written on 23 March 2012.
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Aranha, Sandra. (<em>individual</em>)
Description
An account of the resource
Sandra Aranha witnessed a bomb explosion on Ebury Bridge Road, London on 10 October 1981. The bomb had been planted by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and was detonated when a bus carrying British soldiers drove past.<br /> Sandra Aranha first provided her account of the events of that day to CAIN in 2012. In July 2014 she agreed that her written story could be added to the Accounts of the Conflict archive.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Sandra Aranha
Subject
The topic of the resource
Personal account of a bomb attack.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Accounts of the Conflict
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2012
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright Sandra Aranha
Nature
Non DC - Nature of Organisation (Victims; community; sectorial; etc.)
Individual
Stories Collected
Non DC - Number of stories recorded as part of the project.
1
Stories Deposited
Non DC - Number of stories deposited with Accounts of the Conflict.
1
Collection Permission Form
Non DC - Collection permission form signed and returned.
Yes
Delayed Access
Non DC - Yes/No on request for delayed access.
No
Is Organisation
Non DC - Is this collectionn an Organisation? (Yes if yes/Leave Blank if no)
Yes
Availability Online
Non DC - Availabilty Status (deposited, delayed, external, cain)
deposited
Oral History
A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge.
Story Title
The title, if any, of the story or account.
<em>Ebury Bridge Road bomb</em>
Story Available
Y/N
Yes
Story Format
Main format of the story (video; audio; etc.).
Text
Story Source
Source of where the story can be found.
Accounts of the Conflict archive
Interviewee Surname
Aranha
Interviewee Forename(s)
Sandra
Interviewee Gender
Female
Home Address
If publicly available, record address (not house number) of interviewee at the time of the interview.
Byron Bay, NSW Australia
Ind Permission Form
Yes/No - Individual permission form signed and returned to Accounts.
Yes (signed 24 July 2014)
Ind Delay Access Y/N
Y/N for individual story-teller delayed access request (check signed permission form)
No
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Microsoft Word 97 - 2003 Document (.doc)
Archive Format
Format used for the archive.
Adobe Systems Portable Document Format (PDF) File (.pdf) produced using Adobe Acrobat X Pro
Web Format
Format used for the Web site.
PDF
Story Abstract
Text from any publicly available abstract which describes the story.
This is a single personal account by Sandra Aranha of a bombing she witnessed on the Ebury Bridge Road, London on 10 October 1981.
Themes/Topics Mentioned
Major Themes/Topics first, then sub-themes and topics.
Victims; Bombing
Dates Mentioned
Specific dates, or ranges.
10 October 1981 [1980s]
Events Mentioned
Major events mentioned.
Ebury Bridge Road Bombing
Places Mentioned
Places mentioned: cities, towns, villages, etc.
Ebury Bridge Road, London
Organisations Mentioned
Main organisations mentioned.
Irish Republican Army (IRA)
Victim 1
Name of first or main victim.
Nora Field
ID Victim 1
ID number from Sutton for victim 1.
2268
Victim 2
Name of second victim mentioned.
John Breslin
ID Victim 2
ID number from Sutton for victim 2.
2269
Previous Address
Previous address (during conflict / story).
London, England
Status
Details of status of interviewee during conflict (civilian; security force; combatant; paramilitary; political party; loyal order; etc.).
Civilian
Ind Form Uploaded
Scanned copy of paper form for preservation alongside the stories.
Yes (scanned)
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
<em>Ebury Bridge Road bomb</em>, by Sandra Aranha
Description
An account of the resource
A personal account of a bombing in London on 10 October 1981.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Sandra Aranha
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Accounts of the Conflict, INCORE, University of Ulster
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2012
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Text; PDF file
Language
A language of the resource
English
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
10 October 1981; Ebury Bridge Bridge Road, London, England
Stories Collected
Non DC - Number of stories recorded as part of the project.
1
Stories Deposited
Non DC - Number of stories deposited with Accounts of the Conflict.
1
Collection Permission Form
Non DC - Collection permission form signed and returned.
Yes (dated 24 September 2014)
Permission Form Scanned
Non DC - Scan of permission form uploaded to archive.
Scanned;
Delayed Access
Non DC - Yes/No on request for delayed access.
No
CAIN Links
Non DC - Links to related information on CAIN
CAIN: Sutton's Index of Deaths: <a class="lightwindow page-options" title="Additional related information on the CAIN Web site" href="https://cain.ulster.ac.uk/cgi-bin/dyndeaths.pl?querytype=text&keyword=Ebury%20Bridge%20Road">Ebury Bridge Road bombing</a><br /> CAIN: Chronology: <a class="lightwindow page-options" title="Additional related information on the CAIN Web site" href="https://cain.ulster.ac.uk/othelem/chron/ch81.htm#101081">10 October 1981</a>
Availability Online
Non DC - Availabilty Status (deposited, delayed, external, cain)
deposited
Individual Stories