Your gas mask

Gas masks were issued by the government at the start of World War Two. Gas attacks were greatly feared and all British citizens received a gas mask – including young children and babies. Knowing how to maintain your gas mask led the government into producing an information leaflet that explained how this could be done successfully so that the masks worked in the event of an attack. This document is set out below.

Your gas mask

How to keep it and how to use it.

Public information leaflet no 2.

Read this and keep it carefully. You may need it.

Issued from the Lord Privy Seal’s Office July 1939.

Your gas mask

Take care of your gas mask and your gas mask will take care of you

It is possible that in war your life might depend on your gas mask and the condition in which it had been kept.

The official gas mask, or respirator, consists of a metal container filled with material, which absorbs the gas, and a rubber face piece with a non-inflammable transparent window. Some people seem to think that this mask does not look as if it would offer very good protection. Actually, it has been most carefully designed and fully tested, and will give you adequate protection against any of the known war gases. But remember it will not protect you from the ordinary gas that you burn in a gas cooker or gas fire.

How to store it:

Your mask should be kept carefully. Never hang it up by the straps which fasten it on over the head. This will pull the rubber face piece out of shape so that it no longer fits you properly. It should be kept in the special box provided, where this has been issued, but any box which is air tight, or nearly so, will do.

When placed in the box the metal container should lie flat with the rubber face piece uppermost, the transparent window lying evenly on top at full length. Great care should be taken not to bend or fold the window, or let it get scratched, cracked or dented.

Keep the box in a cool place away from strong light. Exposure to heat or prolonged exposure to strong light will spoil the material of the mask and it may cease to give complete protection. It should never be held close to a fire or hot water pipes, or left lying out in the sun.

How to put it on and take it off:

It is important to know how to put on your mask quickly and properly. You might need to do this in a hurry. To put it on, hold the mask by each of the side straps with the thumbs underneath and the inside of the window facing you. Then lift the mask to your face, push your chin forwards into it and draw the straps over the top of your head as far as they will go. See that the straps are properly adjusted and leave them so.

To remove the mask, insert the thumb under the buckle at the back of your head and then pull it forward over the top of your head so that the mask is lowered downwards from the face.

NEVER TRY TO LIFT THE MASK OFF UPWARDS OR BY PULLING THE CONTAINER OR THE EDGE OF THE RUBBER AT THE CHIN.

To prevent the window from misting over when the mask is worn, wet the end of a finger and rub it on a piece of toilet soap. Then rub the finger all over the inside of the window so as to leave a thin film of soap.

Putting your mask away:

After the mask has been used you will find that it is wet on the inside with moisture from the breath. This should be wiped off with a soft dry cloth and the mask allowed to dry before it is put away in its box. Do not try to dry it by applying heat.

The contents of the container do not deteriorate either with age or with wearing the mask when gas is not present. But if you suspect any flaw in your gas mask you should inform your local Air Raid Warden.

It is a good thing to get out your gas mask occasionally and put it on, so as to get used to wearing it, and if you take the simple precautions set out above you will ensure that it is always ready for your protection.

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