A Stretton writer has dedicated a poem to the wartime tragedy of Fauld, when around 70 people died in the UK's largest non-nuclear explosion.
Phillip Binding's verse has been published as part of a Staffordshire poetry collection and put on display at Stafford Library.
Mr Binding, 62, entered three different poems into the country’s first every poetry collection. The Staffordshire Poetry Collection is made up of 50 unique poems written by Staffordshire folk and was unveiled at Staff Library, in Tipping Street, on Thursday, September 28.
Throughout the evening, attendees were treated to readings of the poems, including 'Fauld' by Mr Binding, who said of his work: "My poem is about the Fauld Crater, which was a crater made by a massive explosion in the Second World War. It used to be an RAF ammunition dump, so no-one knows what really caused it.
"Speculation says that it was caused by a failing bomb. If you go today you can still see the crater."
Mr Binding submitted a total of three poems for consideration for the collection, with others about the smells of Burton and school traffic but they were not accepted for inclusion.
Mr Binding said: "I've only really concentrated on poetry for the last five or six years, I'm a member of a number of groups, where we are able to perform and read our own work to one another. It's a good way of finding out if you’re good or not.
"I've met a lot of good friends through it. We support each other and we celebrate each other's successes."
The final 50 poems were whittled down from more than 140 entries, which came together to create a diverse and unique picture of the county.
The outgoing Poet Laureate for Staffordshire, Bert Flitcroft, had invited Mr Binding to submit entries to the collection.
Speaking at the event, Mr Flitcroft said: "I'm absolutely delighted with the collection, which I feel illustrates the diverse nature of our county and proves that poetry is alive and kicking in Staffordshire.
"I do hope that the poems reach out to as many people as possible and I'm delighted that they are all now online with an audio option enabling everyone to be able to read, listen and explore them."
The full collection of 50 Staffordshire poems are available to be read and listened to online at www.staffordshirepoetlaureate.wordpress.com/staffordshirepoetrycollection .
