A photograph of fire fighters operating a new fire engine, taken by Tovey for the Daily Herald newspaper on 16 July, 1940. This fire crew are unloading hoses and a ladder from a new fire engine.

A photograph of fire fighters operating a new fire engine, taken in July 1940 by Tovey for the Daily Herald.

This fire crew are unloading hoses and a ladder from a new fire engine. The fire services in London were severely tested during the second world war. The Blitz, the German aerial bombing campaign of the capital, began in the late summer of 1940 and saw widespread devastation all over London.