That’s me on the left John Dixon (Jack) to my friends I was on HMS Sunflower the night HMS Firedrake was lost, and I will never forget it.
We left Londonderry on the 12th December 1942 to join the west bound convoy ON153 and 43 merchant ships bound for North America, we were part of the escort group which consisted of fore Corvettes and two Destroyers. The Sunflower which I was aboard built 1940. The Alisma and Pink also built in 1940. And the Loosestrife built in 1941. The two Destroyers were the Ripley a four funnelled American Destroyer, its original name was the USS Shubrick built for service in the first world war, and the Firedrake (H79).

It was on the evening of the 16th that the U-boat U211 attacked the convoy. One report is that the U-boat Fired a spread of four torpedoes into the convoy hoping to hit something in doing so struck the Firedrake. Action stations had been sounded, my station was the cordite supply to the 4" gun. I remember standing on the gun platform with cordite container on my right shoulder, ready to supply a reduced charge of cordite to the breach loader. The mountainous seas were coming over the bows and drenching the gun crew. It was freezing cold, a gale force wind was blowing, and all I had on was my socks, underwear, sand-shoes and overalls with a life belt around my chest. The order was given to load star shell and shoot.

It was then one of our party, a Newfoundland rating by the name of Furey, with a heaving line tied around his chest, lowered himself down the scramble net into the sea. He then swam towards the floating cork net. When he got there he entwined his arms in the netting he became part of the "towing line". We then pulled the net towards and finally along side the Sunflower. Able seaman Furey remained in the sea to assist the men up the scrambling net on to our heaving deck. As this brave action was taking place, the starboard bridge communication signal lamp was being used to spot the other survivors in the water. It was being used intermittently, because of the fear of becoming another target for the submarine.

In the beam of light a rubber dinghy was momentary illuminated, with two men inboard. One of the men was stretched out, not moving, the other man had a small paddle which he was using in his attempt to make his way towards our ships side. The moment the light flashed on him I saw and heard him call out for us to help those men who were still in the water before rescuing them both. The two men were probably duty stokers from the engine room, as they only had vests and trouser overalls on. The hands of the man who was paddling were blackened and appeared to have been badly burnt, but he seamed to be void of experiencing pain.

Leading Seaman George Joseph Furey
HMS Sunflower

Bill to some of his mates on board the Sunflower in 1942.
George was never issued a medal for his heroic action on the night the Firedrake was lost with 168 young lives, even though he did save the lives of 26 of the crew, but he was mentioned in dispatches.

The text of his recognition award is as follows:
" By the Kings order the name of Able Seaman George Joseph Furey, HMS Sunflower, was published in the London Gazette on the 23 of March 1943 as mentioned in a dispatch for distinguished service. I am charged to record his majesty's high appreciation" signed by A.V. Alexander, First Lord of the Admiralty.

George's sun Bill wrote to the association this year, this is his letter:
On the night the Firedrake was lost, my father went over the side with a rope tied around his waist.
He would swim out to a man in the water and hold onto him while his mates hauled him back onboard the Sunflower. He did this 28 times and saved 27 lives, the last man he brought to the rail of the Sunflower slipped from his arms as he was too exhausted to hold him any longer.
These were the only men saved from the Firedrake. My father was a very strong man with lots of courage who took this extraordinary action to save lives. Getting away from the side of a ship in 60 foot waves is quite a feat he did this 28 times.
One of the crew of the Sunflower a signalman, came to Newfoundland from England a few years ago to visit my father he was still amazed at the courage and strength of my father after 50 years.

George died in April, 1996, at the age of 87. He lived a full life and raised a family of ten children. While we knew that he had helped save 26 men during the war, we didn't know all the details. He was not one to talk about himself. Shortly before he died, I did talk to him about it. He didn't see himself as a hero but talked instead about the 27th man that he couldn't hold on to, due to exhaustion. He was sorry that he couldn't have saved more.

George's daughter Helen, also wrote to the association this is her letter:
Yes it is a truly amazing story. My father was a very humble man from a small outpost community.
He never spoke much about the Firedrake disaster. Towards the end of his life a gentleman from England wrote in a local paper that he would be coming to Newfoundland and wanted to locate a man "Fleury" who had saved the lives on the Firedrake.
Indeed he had got the name wrong but he was looking for my father George Furey. My mom responded and the Evening Telegram, a local paper ran an article on the reunion and the story of the rescue.
Many on board the Sunflower thought that my Dad had received a medal but he never did, and if you knew my Dad , well he certainly would not look for one. Newfoundland wasn't part of Canada at the time and the Newfoundlanders enlisted as part of the British Navy.
He reminisced at the end of his life that he should have rescued more of the crew and felt badly that he had not reach more of the young men in the water that cold night.