On Tuesday 8th October 1940, at around 4pm, a lone bomber dropped four high explosive bombs and two oil incendiaries on Havelock Road, Pelham Arcade and York Buildings in Hastings. Three people were killed in the attack with ten others injured, one seriously.
Joan Timms, aged 19, was walking with a friend towards the town centre opposite Pelham Arcade and Breeds Place when a bomb hit nearby. She was killed instantly, and her friend survived.
After the initial bombs were dropped the bomber then circled the town trying to locate the train station. After twenty minutes it finally dropped a 2,000lb bomb, but missed its target. The bomb hit the Braybrooke Road allotments instead.