Lot 3760

Description

British Empire Medal for courage at sea, (GVIR with GRI cypher) (Civil). Henry Edward Heinson. Engraved, rim with dark marks and digs but appears to be renamed. Suspender replaced, fine.

BEM: Supplement to LG 25/5/1943, p2308.

Citation: 'The ship, which had been forced to drop out of convoy by very heavy weather damage was torpedoed and sank within seven minutes. Able Seaman Heinson displayed outstanding courage and fortitude. After being thrown into the sea when the ship sank, he managed to scramble on board a section of a boat which had floated clear of the ship. In this he drifted for eighteen days before being picked up. He had very little water and his only food was a cabbage which he had brought away with him. He used a canvas door cover to collect snow, hailstones and rain, and this with a jar of distilled water constituted his supply. The weather was very bad with high seas and wind, but his fine spirit and resource enabled him to survive his tremendous ordeal.'

Able Seaman Henry Edward Heinson, born on 9Oct1903 was a crewman on the British Steam Merchant Barberrys which was torpedoed on 26Nov1942 while on route from New York to Glasgow with a general cargo. The attack occurred at 19.17 hours when the Barberrys, the ship of the convoy commodore in convoy SC-110, was torpedoed and sunk by U-boat U-663 (Capt Heinrich Schmid) northeast of St.John's, Canada. With research.