Colours paraded Kilkeel lifeboat crew member Earnest McKee, escorted by fellow crew members Geoffrey Annett and John Fisher, carried the colours of the RNLI at the National Service for Seafarers at St Paul's Cathedral in London on 20 October 1993.

The service has been held annually since 1905 - the centenary of Nelson's death at Trafalgar - and is organised by The Mission to Seamen.

Members of the Royal Navy, Merchant Navy Royal Fleet Auxiliary, sea training schools and representatives from commercial shipping, fishing companies and organisations concerned with safety and sea rescue attend the evening service in the Cathedral.

The three Kilkeel lifeboatmen were chosen to represent more than 4,000 men and women who serve as volunteersat the Institution's 211 lifeboat stations..