A proud grandson has spoken of the moment his hero grandad fearlessly saved a life when a wartime bomb struck Southend High Street.

Eric Thompson, a teenage Boy Scout, was working in the historic R A Jones jewellery store when it was struck by a German bomb in the Second World War.

The building was engulfed in flames on that fateful day in October 1942, but Eric bravely battled through to save a trapped shopkeeper in a neighbouring store.

Ashley Thompson, 40, was only a child when Eric died in 1987 but remains proud of his grandad.

He said: “My grandad was in the jewellers and ran out when the bomb went off.

“He then saw someone trapped in the building next door, so he climbed onto the roof and went across to the next building.

Bombed - the scene after R A Jones was struck during the Second World War

Bombed - the scene after R A Jones was struck during the Second World War

“The building was burning and he tied himself to a fire hose to lower himself down.

“He managed to get the person out, against all odds.

“He was regarded as a hero, and rightly so. Not many people, after a bomb goes off, would be so fearless and go into a burning building.

“My grandad was the kind of person who would always put others before himself.”

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Eric went on to establish the Thompson and Wilkins jewellers, in London Road, and was also rewarded for his bravery in the midst of a Second World War bombing.

However, another blaze resulted in the prized possession being taken away from Ashley.

He added: “My grandad was in the Boy Scouts and was rewarded for his bravery with a medal.

“It was left to me after he died and I still have the card which says ‘give this to Ashley’.

Brave - Eric Thompson heroically saved a worker after Southend was bombed

Brave - Eric Thompson heroically saved a worker after Southend was bombed

“The irony is I no longer have the medal because of another fire.

“Some people broke into my house and set fire to it, which meant the medal went up in smoke with the house.

“The medal was gifted to my grandad following a fire but it was then taken away from us because of another fire. You couldn’t make this stuff up!

“I have tried to get a replacement medal online, but it was exceptionally rare.”