Everyone had to have blackout curtains made and hung. This was quite often a combined effort with a group of people helping each other to make and hang the curtains and blackout frames. Some mums stitched fancy patterns on the inside of the curtains to cheer things up a bit. You were not allowed to open a door at night if the inside light was on and checks were made by the ARP wardens to see if any light was shining out of your house. 'Put that light out!'

The sirens to warn of an air raid were very scary. If you were at school and couldn't get to a shelter the drill was to put your gas mask on and dive under the desk.

If houses had cellars many people used these during an air raid, and some even used under the stairs and under tables.

Shelters were made of either brick, metal or concrete, sometimes reinforced. They would contain seats, a paraffin heater or candles and there was always a cheerful atmosphere.

Many children had a bag ready with teddy, a drink and some food and would go into the shelters in their dressing gowns. The shelters did get cold and wet and some families stopped going into them after a while.

Gas masks were not nice things at all. They were smelly and restrictive, but necessary. Everyone carried their gas mask at all times.

Adlington was bombed quite a few times. It was thought that the railway was mistaken for the ROF at Euxton and the cricket ground also ended up with a large hole in it where a bomb had dropped.

One man remembers a German daylight bomber coming over Lostock Hall and dropping bombs. The next day six of his school friends were dead.

Another group of people remember seeing a daylight bomber and the pilots who were easily visible. This bomber was shot down whilst trying to drop bombs on Leyland Motors.

Many remember seeing bombers flying over on their way to Liverpool and watching the sky light up as the bombs were dropped. Unmanned rockets were also seen. One bomb dropped on Brooke Street in Chorley. Incendiary bombs fell through some roofs and one boy took one to school after it had fallen on his bed in the night, no doubt causing a bit of a panic.