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Survivor's tears as bomber crash memorial is vandalised as crowds flocked to parks in sunshine

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date01 April 2021
Date01 April 2021
Publication titleMyLondon (England)
The vandals trashed US flags and poppies at the memorial he still tends, nearly 75 years after the crash.

Tony Foulds, 84, said American flags were ripped down and torn while remembrance poppies were pulled out of flower pots in Endcliffe Park, Sheffield, on Tuesday.

The park was packed with thousands of people on Tuesday and Wednesday, causing widespread concern over COVID-19 risks and the seven tonnes of rubbish Sheffield City Council said it cleared up on Wednesday.

Mr Foulds hit the headlines in 2019 when the story of how the B-17 Flying Fortress Mi Amigo crashed in front of him on February 22, 1944, killing the 10 crewmen, eventually led to a flypast in the park, with 12,000 gathering to watch.

He told the PA news agency that he arrived on Wednesday morning and first spotted the biggest American flag at the memorial, that he tends most days, had been ripped down.

“All the flags had been taken down, placed on the floor and been ripped to make sure I couldn’t put them back,” he said.

“I can’t understand why they would touch a memorial.

“This is beyond me. I would never have dreamt of it when I was young.

“They purposely left them torn.”

Mr Foulds said: “When the police came round I was crying. I was heartbroken.”

He said he was reluctant to blame drunk youngsters who had gathered on the huge grass field opposite the memorial, saying: “I can only assume it was political.”

He said he has had hundreds of messages and offers of cash to replace the damaged items. He said the council has received thousands of further messages of support.

Mr Foulds was on the same grassed area with friends 77 years ago as the stricken Mi Amigo approached the park, and he believes the crew crashed into a small slope in order to avoid him and his friends.

The story of how he has devoted himself to their memory went around the world, after a chance encounter with BBC broadcaster Dan...

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