BRONZE MEDAL SERVICES AT DONAGHADEE NOVEMBER 21ST. - DONAGHADEE, CO. DOWN. At 6.20 in the morning the coastguard telephoned to the Donaghadee life-boat station that a steamer was ashore at Ballymacormick Point in Belfast Lough. A gale was blowing from the north-west, with gusts at hurricane force, and a very heavy sea was running. The motor life-boat Civil Service No. 5 left her moorings ten minutes after the call came, but in the heavy run of sea in the harbour the starboard propeller fouled one of the mooring ropes and it took the bowman half an hour to clear it.

The life-boat reached the vessel in distress at 8.15 and found her to be the S.S. Coastville, of Liverpool, with nine men on board. She was on the rocks and very heavy seas were breaking over her. The bottom all round was rocky, and the water was shallow.

It was impossible for the life-boat to anchor on that bottom and drop down to the steamer, and the coxswain took her right alongside, on the weather side, through heavy broken water, and rescued seven of the crew of nine. The other two men were rescued from the shore. As the last of the seven men was being taken off, and the life-boat was about to draw clear, a huge sea struck her, and the swirl of waters swept her right under one of the steamer’s davits. The davit broke her mast and it fell on the captain of the Coastville, injuring his head. The bowman gave him first aid, and when he was landed he was taken to hospital.The life-boat put the rescued men ashore at Bangor. There the honorary secretary of the station was waiting.

He told the crew to stand by as another steamer was reported to be in distress. However, a second message came that she was able to go on her way, on one engine, and did not need help, and the life-boat returned to her station, arriving at noon.

A fortnight later, on the 6th of December, the Donaghadee life-boat was again called out in a north-west gale. This time it was to the help of a steamer which had gone ashore in Ballyholme Bay. The life-boat was launched at 9.20 in the morning, and reached the steamer an hour later. She was the Hope Star, of Newcastle - on - Tyne, with a crew of forty-three, and was lying in shallow water surrounded by rocks where, the seas were breaking heavily. The district officer of coastguard, who was on the beach with the life-saving rocket apparatus, felt certain that once the life-boat got into that broken water she would be washed up on the beach, and was standing ready with the apparatus to rescue the life-boatmen. But his help was not needed. The coxswain, handling the life-boat with great skill, took her right into what those on shore described as “ a boiling pot ” of water, and brought her safely alongside the steamer, and took off nine of the fortythree men of the crew. The others would not leave her. After landing the nine men the life-boat returned to the steamer and stood by until 4.30 in the afternoon, by which time wind and sea were less violent. She got back to her station at 5.30, having been out eight hours.

In these two services the coxswain handled the life-boat with courage and fine seamanship, and the Institution made the following awards : To COXSWAIN SAMUEL NELSON, the bronze medal for gallantry, and a copy of the vote inscribed on vellum ; To DAVID NELSON, the motor-mechanic, the thanks of the Institution inscribed on vellum ; To ALEXANDER NELSON, the bowman, the thanks of the Institution inscribed on vellum ; To the coxswain and each memberof the crew for the service to the Coastville a reward of £1 10s. in addition to the ordinary scale reward of £1 8s. 6d. Standard rewards to crew, £10 3s. 6d. ; additional rewards to crew, £12 ; total rewards, £22 3s. 6d. ; To the coxswain and each member of the crew for the service to the Hope Star, a reward of £1 in addition to the ordinary scale reward of £1 8s. 6d.

Standard rewards to crew, £10 17s. ; additional rewards to crew, £8 ; total rewards, £18 17s..