Talk:Penlee lifeboat disaster

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can you explain what "solomon Brown " is and what's happened

Everything is clearly explained in the article. Icundell 23:21, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Tribute poem

I have removed the section from the article that contained the memorial peom (more appropriate in Wikisource?) but the text is below:

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[edit] A Tribute

The year 2006 marks the 25th anniversary of the Penlee Lifeboat Disaster. The following poem was written by Brian O’Dowda (Bodowda@ntlworld.com) in January 1982 and is dedicated to the heroism of the Solomon Browne’s crew.

Duty

Teatime in Cornwall on a Saturday night,

Just six days to Christmas, the storm at its height

A maroon was sent up that brought men at the run,

But this was Penlee, and the year eighty-one.

Cox Richards saw the fearful might of the sea

And breathed a soft prayer that the boat would slip free

He’ll not get her launched, the experienced ones knew,

But William calmly selected his crew.

He turned back Neil Brockman though eager and brave,

And slipped the ‘Browne’ towards the wild tempest wave.

“Just one from each house” His cry lost on the storm,

But out of such wisdom legends are born

James Madron, Nigel Brockman, say their names with pride,

With Barry Torrie and Gary Wallis; but why had they died?

For a Lloyds Open Charter and a deadly delay,

While a tugboat stood handy – but would owners pay?

Kevin Smith was on leave but he didn’t wait,

With Charles Greenhough and John Blewett went to their fate.

To man the swift lifeboat and take on the storm

For saving men’s lives is why they were born.

And what a staggering total of lives they had won

Solomon Brown’s tally had reached ninety-one!

She crashed through the gale for the three-hundredth time

To raise her saved number to around ninety-nine.

They succeeded at first past their own wildest dreams

To pluck frightened victims from the coaster’s deck beams

One, two, three four were hauled safely aboard

While a Culdrose Sea King could do naught but record

The fantastic bravery of the Solomon’s crew

Returning time after time – what more could they do?

In sixty-foot seas that were December cold

That fearless young crew that would never grow old

But the heroic rescue was doomed from the start

When the furious storm played her own heartless part

Reclaiming those lives so desperately won

From Mousehole and Penlee, in the year eighty-one

Brian O’Dowda January 1982

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-- ALoan (Talk) 10:56, 2 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] BBC documentary

In August 2006, the BBC had a very good documentary on the disaster on TV. It had a long interview with the helicopter pilot who tried to help and saw parts of what happened. Oddly, he was an American Navy pilot on exchange with the Royal Navy at the time.

It was very moving and could be a source for additional information here.