Alfred Oakley

Bank: Westminster Bank

Place of work: Head Office, London

Died: 12 September 1940

Alfred William Oakley was born on 7 August 1921, the son of Alfred Henry and Elizabeth Ann Oakley. As a young man, one of his legs was amputated after he stood on a rusty nail. In November 1939 he joined the temporary wartime staff of Westminster Bank, at its head office Stationery department. 

Oakley and his family lived in Shoreditch, and during air raids they and their neighbours sheltered in the basement of the nearby Wenlock brewery. While they were sheltering there on the night of 11 September 1940, a bomb hit the school next door. Falling debris partially blocked the exits from the basement and also caused a leak of ammonia gas from the brewery's refrigeration plant, which was directed into the basement by the ventilation system. Most people were able to climb out with some assistance, but Alfred's physical disability made it impossible for him to escape. Rather than leave him there alone, his father stayed with him. Both men died. Young Alfred was 19 years old.