New memorial for soldiers killed in D-Day training

A new memorial plaque in Kent commemorates 22 soldiers who died during a D-Day training exercise.

The men from the 4th Battalion Somerset Light Infantry died when boxes of anti-tank grenades exploded at Dymchurch Beach on 29 May 1944.

About 300 people attended a drumhead memorial ceremony on Thursday, where the memorial was unveiled on the sea wall.

Attendees included military personnel, local scout groups and representatives from the Royal British Legion and Dymchurch Parish Council.

The Reverend David Parrott, who led the memorial service, said: "What greater privilege can there be than to work with so many different age groups and all remembering the same event?"

An army officer said in 1941 that either an act of God, the heat of the sun or a match head igniting in a box of detonators caused the accidental explosion.

The incident was not widely publicised at the time for fear of affecting morale ahead of the D-Day landings.

Ceremony flag bearer Richard Thompson, of the Rifles and Light Infantry Association Somerset, said: "Unfortunately and tragically they lost their lives in Dymchurch, but it doesn't make their contribution any less."

Mr Parrott added: "Some of our local community discovered this and decided to do some research.

"The result of their work and preparation is that today this plaque has been dedicated to make sure that those men are remembered in this place."

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