Featured on the BBC today: the story of the sole survivor from HMS Perseus, sunk on Dec 6th 1941 in the Mediterranean:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15959067
A fascinating read - the escape and the later controversy surrounding it somehow finish off with a very heartwarming ending to this story
Quote:
John Capes died in 1985 but it was not until 1997 that his story was finally verified.
In a series of dives to the wreck of Perseus, Kostas Thoctarides discovered Capes's empty torpedo tube bunk, the hatch and compartment exactly as he had described it, and finally, his blitz bottle from which he had taken that last fortifying swig of rum.
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I can't explain it, but I personally find something touching about the story of an old sailor and a miraculous escape (that some, perhaps, didn't believe) being proven true in the end.
Of course, it's important to not forget the tragedy that befell all the other men on this boat, but such is war.