Emergency lighting supply in an underground ward, St Thomas' Hospital, Lambeth Palace Road, Lambeth, Greater London
A nurse fitting a light bulb into a portable lamp, in front of a table of lights and candles, in an underground ward at St Thomas' Hospital. Between September 1940 and May 1941, St Thomas’ Hospital was bombed six times, but despite large amounts of bomb damage the hospital remained open throughout WWII. The most destructive bombing occurred on 15th September 1940, the third bombing of the hospital and only a week after the start of the Blitz: a bomb hit the main hospital corridor, causing the medical outpatients’ block to collapse, and destroying the kitchen, canteen, dispensary and administrative block. During the Blitz, much of the hospital’s work was transferred to the basement, and the blackout and undependable light sources meant that staff sometimes carried out their work in near-darkness.
