Donald Clarke

Who was Donald Clarke?

Apprentice Donald Owen Clarke of the Merchant Navy was posthumously awarded the George Cross for his heroism on 8 August 1942. Sailing alone, his motor tanker, the San Emiliano, was torpedoed and sunk by U.155 in the central Atlantic, south east of Trinidad. The ship was engulfed in flames but despite being so badly burned that he died the next day of his wounds, he helped save other severely burned victims by rowing a lifeboat clear of the stricken tanker. He rowed the lifeboat, the only one to survive the sinking, for two hours despite his hands being so badly burned they had to be cut away from the oars as his flesh had stuck to them. Lying at the bottom of the boat, as they waited for rescue, he sang to keep up the spirits of the other men.

Notice of his award appeared in the London Gazette of the 20 July 1943. The citation ended thus "By his supreme effort, undertaken without thought of self and in spite of terrible agony, Apprentice Clarke ensured the safety of his comrades in the boat. His great heroism and selfless devotion were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Merchant Navy."