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auxiliary personnel, while practice driving was provided regularly under the supervision
of driving instructors. Operational exercises were arranged to familiarise
the staff with the position of the hospitals and first-aid posts and to obtain general
knowledge of the topography of their area.
Calls for ambulances to deal with air-raid casualties were transmitted direct to
auxiliary ambulance stations from the borough control centres under the direction
of the London Civil Defence Region.
With the cessation of intensive and prolonged air raids on London, the Auxiliary
Service, in addition to routine training and exercises, undertook in suitable cases the
removal of patients to and from hospital, as well as the conveyance of medical
officers, midwives, hospital stores and equipment, etc., and thus rendered valuable
assistance in " stand by " periods.
The extent of the work carried out by the auxiliary service during 1945, and
during the whole of the war is shown by the following figures:—
Number of war casualties conveyed to hospitals and first-aid posts, period
1st January to 8th May, 1945 (last day on which casualties were recorded
27th March, 1945) 2,878
Total number of war casualties conveyed to hospitals and first-aid posts,
period 3rd September, 1939, to 8th May, 1945 48,709
No mention of the war-time services would be complete without reference to the
valuable contribution made by the Council's peace-time ambulance staff in administrative
and operational matters and instructional duties to the auxiliary personnel.
The services of the sanitary inspectors of the public health department were
utilised during the war in connection with the maintenance of premises and repairs
necessary as a result of enemy action. The inspectors, who made some 1,400 visits
during 1945 also rendered very valuable technical assistance in the preparation
of war damage claims and the reinstatement of premises on relinquishment.
The following honours and awards were gained by members of the auxiliary
service during their war service:—George Medal, 3; British Empire Medal, 11;
Commendation, 5.
A letter expressing the Council's appreciation of their services was sent to all
auxiliaries on termination of their duties with the London Auxiliary Ambulance
Service. London, indeed, owes a heavy debt to the members of the London
Ambulance Service and the London Auxiliary Ambulance Service who served the
capital and its inhabitants so well during the grim days of persistent enemy air attacks.
At the end of the war the number of permanent operative staff in the regular
ambulance service had been reduced from over 400 to 217, almost entirely as a result
of the call-up. To fill the resulting vacancies in a temporary capacity, 92 men and
95 women had been recruited, mainly from the auxiliary service. The disbandment
of the London Auxiliary Ambulance Service in July, 1945, meant not only the
loss of a valuable source of assistance to the regular service, but also a most useful
field for the recruitment of staff already familiar with the duties of the service. By
the end of 1945, however, a small number of permanent staff had returned from
service with H.M. Forces, and recruitment from demobilised ex-service men began
to reverse the tendency, which was particularly noticeable in the later stages of the
war, for the average age of the personnel employed to show a pronounced increase.
Special arrangements were made to augment the facilities of the London
Ambulance Service for V.E. Day and V.J. Day celebrations so that additional
accident ambulances were available by day and night at the accident and general
ambulance stations. The calls to accidents were:—
V.E. Day V. J. Day
8th May, 1945 241 15th August, 1945 226
9th May, 1945 205 16th August, 1945 172
By comparison the daily average of accident calls for the first four months of
1945 was 127.