← Real Survival Stories
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- [00:02]
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- [00:34]
John Hopkins
It's Tuesday, May 4, 1982. A few miles east of Port Stanley, the capital of the Falkland Islands, a British naval destroyer glides serenely over a calm, flat South Atlantic Ocean. Over 400 meters in length, the the 4,000 ton HMS Sheffield is a sleek gray battleship punctuated by radars, masts and on the forward deck, two Sea Dart missile launchers to combat air attacks. The ocean might appear calm this morning, but beneath the surface, tensions simmer. These waters are currently embroiled in a bitter territorial struggle between Britain and Argentina over the sovereignty of the Falklands, also known as the Malvinas Islands. Right now, two Argentine super etentard strike fighter aircraft speed towards the HMS Sheffield. Armed with powerful anti ship missiles, the jets fly in low, enabling them to evade detection from the Sheffield's radar systems. Below deck on the British vessel, it's just another routine morning patrol. There is no intelligence of any pending attack, no warning of what is about to happen. With the Sheffield in their sights, the jets release their payload. One missile strikes the starboard side, careering through the ship and breaching roughly two and a half meters above the waterline, creating a gaping hole in the hull fed by masses of unexpended fuel. A massive fire rips through the destroyer, forcing those who have survived the blast to abandon ship. A few miles away aboard a separate ship, 25 year old petty officer Chris Howe watches the destruction unfold. He can see the plumes of black smoke billowing from the stricken vessel. As HMS Sheffield crumbles before his eyes is the first Royal Navy ship to be sunk since World War II. The grim realities of this conflict are hitting home.
- [03:00]
Chris Howe
That's when he really was wake up and smell the coffee. It was always for real, I suppose. But it really did bring it home to you that lives are being lost. And that could be us.
- [03:18]
John Hopkins
Ever wondered what you would do when disaster strikes if your life depended on your next decision? Could you make the right choice? Welcome to Real Survival Stories. These are the astonishing tales of ordinary people thrown into extraordinary situations. People suddenly forced to fight for their lives. In this episode, we Meet Chris Howe, MBE In May 1982, Chris is stationed aboard HMS Coventry as a communications specialist. His work takes place behind the scenes, down in the ship's operations room, surrounded by radars and computer screens. But when Argentine jets target the Coventry, he will suddenly be thrust into the firing line.
- [04:04]
Chris Howe
Next thing, there's this. A sudden impact and a dull thud, followed by a flash, a searing flash and heat.
- [04:13]
John Hopkins
In a split second, Chris's life will be thrown into the balance as he is engulfed by flames aboard a rapidly sinking ship.
- [04:23]
Chris Howe
I'm trapped. I've got wires around my feet and I couldn't move. I realized I was in extreme pain. I also realized that I had very little clothing left on and I was badly burnt. I realized that this is where my life's going to end.
- [04:40]
John Hopkins
I'm John Hopkins from the Noiser Podcast Network. This is Real Survival stories. It's Sunday, April 11, 1982. A flotilla of battleships is anchored off the coast of Ascension Island, a tiny isolated outcrop halfway between Africa and Brazil. For over 150 years, this island, barely more than a speck of volcanic rock in the middle of the South Atlantic, has been used by the British as a naval staging post. Against a dramatic backdrop of jungle clad foothills, three Royal Navy destroyers sit motionless in the coastal waters, their pale gray gun turrets stark against the tropical sky. On board the three ships, combat preparations are being made. Ammunition is being loaded, guns cleaned and tested, charts unfurled and spread across tables. Nine days ago, General Leopoldo Galtieri, leader of a military dictatorship in Argentina, ordered a ground invasion of the Falkland or Malvinas Islands, a British overseas territory. In doing so, he reignited a decades old sovereignty dispute between the two nations over the remote archipelago. For many Argentines, the invasion is seen as a rightful reclamation of national territory. However, in Britain, Galtieri's surprise attack is widely viewed as an unprovoked act of aggression. An attempt to seize land that has been under British control for over 140 years. A task force of three Royal Navy battleships, the HMS Coventry, Sheffield and Glasgow, was dispatched to the South Atlantic to establish a 200 mile exclusion zone around the islands to pressure Argentina into backing down. Now the three ships are docked at Ascension island awaiting instruction from high command. Among the men anxiously waiting for news is 25 year old petty Officer Chris Howe. Chris and his crewmates on the HMS Coventry were on a training exercise in the Mediterranean. When word came through about the invasion. It took them all by surprise. Not so much that they were being called into action, but who they were up against.
- [07:45]
Chris Howe
Argentina wasn't seen as the enemy in those days. In those days it was still the Cold War. And our biggest threat that we trained against certainly in warfare, was a Russian threat, a Soviet threat. We were training against regiments of bomber aircraft coming round the North Cape, down the North Sea to attack the uk. Argentina was not the country that had those sort of assets to use against us.
- [08:17]
John Hopkins
Still, many expect this dispute to be resolved without bloodshed. For all the talk of impending action, there is still hope that a peaceful resolution will be reached before a shot is fired.
- [08:31]
Chris Howe
Most of us to a man would expect that a diplomatic solution would be found and that we'd be turned round. We'd do a 180 degrees and start heading north again and not south.
- [08:45]
John Hopkins
As Chris helps load provisions onto the ship, a helicopter suddenly appears overhead. On deck, the men pause their work, shielding their eyes from the sun as they silently watch the chopper touch down. On the helip, the cockpit door opens and a stern looking officer steps out, his double breasted jacket adorned with ribbons and gleaming brass buttons. Here's Admiral Sandy Woodward, Chief of the Royal Navy's Falklands Task Force here with commands. Minutes later, Chris and the rest of the senior crew wait below in the officer's mess. The door opens and the Admiral strides into the room. The officers stand to attention. Admiral Woodward salutes before putting his men at ease. Then in brisk, clipped tones, he addresses them. Chris listens intently as the picture becomes clear. The orders have been issued. There will be no peaceful negotiation.
- [09:51]
Chris Howe
I recall his words were some of us will not be going home. And that really hit us. We realized then there was no diplomatic solution. This was going to be it and we were going to go into action.
- [10:11]
John Hopkins
Just a few days ago, Chris was preparing for a stretch of shore leave, looking forward to spending some time at home with his wife Margaret and their two sons. How quickly things change.
- [10:23]
Chris Howe
When the Admiral left the ship, we had to go away to our department. So I remember getting my young department together and having to give him that message. And I had one of my guys, he was in tears and was quite upset about that.
- [10:37]
John Hopkins
In the nine years Chris has been serving in the Navy, he's only ever been involved in small scale skirmishes, the occasional lower risk tactical deployment. This is very different. Born and raised in the town of Leighton Buzzard in Southern England, Chris was barely out of school when he signed up to join the armed forces. The Navy promised a life of action and adventure far removed from his small Bedfordshire town.
- [11:10]
Chris Howe
In my last year at school, myself and a good schoolmate were Wondering in that final year, lining up to see the careers advisors, what would we do? And we got together and said, we don't really want some of these apprenticeships that go around sitting in a factory all day long. Not there's anything wrong with that, but that's not something we fancied. And we both agreed to jump on the next bus over to the Royal Naval Careers Office at Luton and made appointments to go and get interviews to join the Royal Navy.
- [11:43]
John Hopkins
At the tender age of 16, Chris was accepted into Her Majesty's naval service. In August 1972, he swapped Leighton Buzzard for HMS Raleigh, a naval academy in Plymouth on England's southwest coast. After completing basic training, his next task was to choose an area in which to specialize, a decision that would come to define his future.
- [12:10]
Chris Howe
I was always good at maths at something like Celnat, and they asked us to choose certain branches and the top one, the creme de la creme, they say at that time, was to join the operations branch and communications. That was one that we both chose.
- [12:29]
John Hopkins
Within the communications department, Chris narrowed his focus to specialize in electronic warfare, which involves using radar and spectrums to detect enemy movement. With a calm disposition and a natural talent for numbers and physics, he's well suited to it. It's a high stakes job, providing clear coordinates and critical information about enemy positioning. Failure to do so can have deadly consequences. Despite the challenges, Chris distinguished himself. Over the course of several years and numerous deployments, the young ensign gradually earned his stripes, climbing the ranks to eventually take command of his own unit.
- [13:14]
Chris Howe
They gave me the position of petty Officer, electronic warfare on HMS Coventry. And that was in 1980. I took over that ship as a young petty officer, actually looking forward to running my own department. Then.
- [13:29]
John Hopkins
The two years since have seen various patrols, NATO postings and training exercises. And in March 1982, Chris and the HMS Coventry sail away from the south coast of England. At that time, nobody on board knows how far they'll end up traveling from home or how many of them will never return.
- [13:58]
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- [14:25]
Paul McGann
Podcast terms apply Titanic ship of Dreams, the new podcast from the award winning Noiser Network. Join me, Paul McGann, as we explore life and death on Titanic. I'll delve into my own family story following my great uncle Jimmy as he tries to escape the engine room. We'll hear the harrowing tales of the victims and the testimonies of the lucky survivors.
- [14:49]
Chris Howe
I saw that ship sink and I saw that ship break in half.
- [14:53]
Paul McGann
Titanic Ship of dreams. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.
- [15:01]
John Hopkins
It's Monday, May 24, 1982. In the clear skies above HMS Coventry, anchored off the eastern shores of the Falkland Islands, seabirds drift effortlessly on the breeze. It's been six weeks since Admiral Woodward issued his fateful orders and the Coventry embarked from Ascension Island. Since then, the simmering tensions have escalated considerably. Three weeks ago, an Argentine battleship, ARA Belgrano, was sunk by a British submarine, killing more than 300 sailors. It was the first major action of the conflict and a wake up call for Chris and his colleagues.
- [15:49]
Chris Howe
Certainly we knew this was the most serious thing that could have happened, that one side or the other would lose a major combatant. And you couldn't get much bigger than the Belgrano. Sadly, hundreds of lives were lost and that was tragic. And that wasn't a moment of euphoria or anything like that. It was just a tragic moment. You did have in the back of your mind that they're going to retaliate for this. And of course, it was only 24 hours later where they did.
- [16:17]
John Hopkins
In retaliation for the Belgrano, an Argentine airstrike sank HMS Sheffield, one of the three British ships in the task force. 20 men were killed. Chris witnessed the event from the Coventry.
- [16:31]
Chris Howe
That's when he really was wake up and smell the coffee. It was always for real, I suppose, but it really did bring it home to you that lives being lost. And that could be us. That could be us.
- [16:46]
John Hopkins
In the weeks since, there have been more bombing raids, more missile attacks, more loss of life. Right now, the Coventry is providing naval gun support over the Falkland's capital of Port Stanley, where British ground forces have just landed. For Chris and his men in the operations room, every day is a constant effort, tracking radar signals, intercepting enemy transmissions and relaying vital intelligence to the bridge. But then, on May 24, new orders are issued by Admiral Woodward. Another amphibious landing of men is planned at San Carlos in the north of the Falklands. To facilitate this, Chris and the men of the HMS Coventry will be part of a risky mission. They will be moving into a dangerous stretch of water Ominously nicknamed Bomb Alley. From here, the Coventry and her sister ship HMS Broadsword will be well placed to shoot down any incoming aircraft approaching from the ocean. It will force the Argentine Skyhawks to approach over land instead.
- [17:57]
Chris Howe
So we were forcing them to come in the not desired approach to San Carlos overland because they were blind and they would only see their targets, our ships landing the soldiers and they would not see them until literally leaving land and just moments to drop their weapons.
- [18:18]
John Hopkins
In theory, this should clear the way for a successful amphibious landing at San Carlos. But there's a catch. With Argentine pilots approaching over land, not sea, it will be nigh on impossible for Chris and his men to monitor the position of the incoming jets. The captain of HMS Coventry, David Hart Dyke, points this out to high command.
- [18:43]
Chris Howe
The captain did argue that we could not do our job properly so close to land because our radar would would not detect load incoming aircraft hugging the land. So any low incoming aircraft that would hug the contours of the land would be lost in what we call ground clutter and we wouldn't see them until they left the land into open sea and doing three, 400 miles an hour, it would only give us literally seconds to react to an incoming threat. So we were vulnerable there.
- [19:20]
John Hopkins
HMS Coventry does have an excellent defense, the Sea Dart, a surface to air missile system locked to the front of the ship. But the ship's location, coupled with the speed of the Argentine jets will make the Sea Dart far less effective than it would be under normal time pressures. Captain Hart Dyke conveys these concerns to the Admiral. But the decision has been made. That evening, the Coventry and the Broadsword move into position. As Chris and his men get ready for the morning, news filters through that tomorrow, May 25th is a significant date.
- [20:01]
Chris Howe
25Th May was the Argentine National Day and they would be out to make some sort of impact on our task group that day to mark the anniversary of their national day.
- [20:24]
John Hopkins
It's dawn on May 25th. Petty Officer Chris Howe stands on the deck of the HMS Coventry. He has his morning brew in hand, as is his daily practice, warming his throat with a hot tea as he takes in the odd serenity of Bomb Alley. Before it all begins, Chris has heard this task of theirs described as a suicide mission. Certainly it will take immense skill, precision and a fair dose of luck to successfully shoot down the enemy jets. But these are the creme de la creme of Her Majesty's Navy. If anyone can pull it off, they can. It's early, but it's obvious they are set for clear weather, the seas are calm, the swell is low and the sun will shine through shortly. Such weather can actually be a disadvantage. In fact, these are the exact conditions that naval officers dread.
- [21:27]
Chris Howe
It was very, very obvious to me that we would be an easy target for them on that day. I would have preferred to have gone up with a rough sea, low visibility, and therefore we would have been a harder target for them to hit.
- [21:46]
John Hopkins
After finishing his tea, Chris makes his way down to the operations room to begin his day's work. It's a dark, low ceilinged space lit by the blue glow of numerous monitors. The air is filled with a beep of radars and the soft murmur of dictated orders. Communication is key. As Chris settles down at his monitor. It isn't clear when the first attack will come, but they all know it's only a matter of time. Sure enough, it isn't long before the first air raid siren sounds. Suddenly red dots line up on the radar. Chris and his colleagues spring into action. The ops room hums with barked commands and brevity codes. Enemy Skyhawks inbound. The sea dart fire is ordered. Chris watches his radar screen with bated breath. There's nothing he or anyone else can do now. They just have to pray. The anti aircraft missile locks onto its target. And then the radio crackles into life. Direct hit. Target down. Relief sweeps through the room. But there's no time for celebration. This is far from over. As the hours pass, continued intense concentration is vital. The alarm blares again.
- [23:27]
Chris Howe
Again. Another afternoon raid which we successfully fought off. Another aircraft was down and the day went on. From defense watches into action stations. Air raid warning red. Back to defense washes action stations. Air raid warning red. Right the way through the day up to around 18:00, 6:00 at night, where we thought, well, there probably won't be any more attacks this day. They never attacked under cover of darkness.
- [24:04]
John Hopkins
As night closes in, the tension gradually lifts. Still Chris keeps his focus, his eyes glued to the radar screen. But he does allow himself a degree of optimism. It seems they may have weathered the storm. Then, with darkness falling over the South Atlantic, troubling news comes through on the radio.
- [24:29]
Chris Howe
We had information just come in from our special forces that were dug in in various places in Argentina around the airfields told us that several aircraft, two lots of two A4 Skyhawks, had left Argentina.
- [24:49]
John Hopkins
The warning may have come through, but nothing shows up on the radars around Chris. There is sudden commotion, shouting voices through every line of communication. The captain speaks briskly into his command. Open line Muffled voices from radios echo confusion from other parts of the ship. Where are the enemy aircraft? How close are they? What's their speed? No one has any immediate answers. Chris looks down at the radar. Suddenly he sees the dots line up on the screen, popping out of the contours and folds of the land which had hidden them from the radar. They approach, speeding towards the Coventry.
- [25:31]
Chris Howe
I was looking down at the radar screen over the shoulder of one of my guys that was running the radar and I could see the aircraft, two aircraft coming towards us. And then up behind that, another two.
- [25:44]
John Hopkins
This time it might be too little, too late. The order goes out. Engage the Sea Dart. The Coventry readies her missile. And then Calamity. The Sea Dart has failed to lock. The planes are too close, moving too fast for the missile system to latch onto the targets. HMS Coventry has become a sitting duck. As the color drains from his face, Chris turns to inform the captain of the situation.
- [26:16]
Chris Howe
And I was just about to tell the captain that we're about to be attacked by two Skyhawks and the next thing there's this. A sudden impact and a dull thud followed by a flash, a searing flash and heat. And then I realized that we'd been hit.
- [26:46]
John Hopkins
It's just after 6pm on May 25, 1982. Two Argentine Skyhawk fighter jets sliced through the South Atlantic sky. Trails of white vapor tumbling from their wingtip. Thousands of feet below, rapidly receding in the distance, a column of thick dark smoke billows from the hull of a stricken battleship. The Skyhawk's sharp noses are pointed towards home. Their mission is accomplished. Their deadly payload has been released. After a day of missed chances, they have finally hit their. Meanwhile, below deck on HMS Coventry, Petty Officer Chris Howe opens his eyes. He is met by a scene of fiery devastation. Through the dense smoke, sparking electrical cables resemble flashes of lightning. Inside, storm clouds. Muffled screams fill the air. The acrid taste of molten rubber scorches chrysostom throat. All around him, flames crackle and spit. Lying sprawled on his back, the 25 year old sailor is in a state of shock. The force of the explosion must have thrown him across the room. He seems to be trapped underneath a desk, tangled in sparking wires. It's apparent Chris was knocked unconscious by the blast, but it's unclear how long he's been out for.
- [28:20]
Chris Howe
I'm trapped. I've got wires around my feet and I couldn't move. I realized I was in extreme pain. I also realized that I had very little clothing left on and I was badly burnt. I had some underwear Left on and some boots, some shreds of material around the collar where my shirt was. And I knew I was in a serious place. At that time, I actually honestly believed I was the only person left in there. And everybody had gone and just left me.
- [28:48]
John Hopkins
Chris gasps for air through the smoke, forcing oxygen into his lungs. The deafening static in his ears drowns out virtually everything. Gradually, as his senses return, he becomes aware of a searing pain in his right arm.
- [29:06]
Chris Howe
I then realized that my arm was on fire. It was a mixture of material that had burned into my skin and was actually alike. It was my right arm and I was putting the flames out with my left hand.
- [29:20]
John Hopkins
Still dazed, Chris manages to bat at the fire on his arm, slowly reducing the flames. But fire isn't the only threat. On the opposite side of the room, seawater surges across the floor from a gaping hole in the port side wall. The ship is healing over from right to left. There's been a direct hit straight through the middle of the Coventry's hull. She may already be half sunk. Chris tries to shift the weight of the tangled cables on top of him, but it's no use.
- [29:56]
Chris Howe
And then I realized that this is where my, my life's going to end. With a ship going over, water pouring in on the port side and the fires everywhere.
- [30:10]
John Hopkins
But just when it seems like all is lost, Chris finds a tiny spark. A catalyst to keep him fighting.
- [30:17]
Chris Howe
But then I just saw an image of my wife and my boys and I decided that's not where my life's going to end.
- [30:26]
John Hopkins
Survival instinct takes over. He starts frantically pulling at the wires around his head and chest, adrenaline overriding the pain screaming through his scorched nerve endings. Eventually, he rips himself free of his entanglement and gets to his feet. Even as he turns his face away from the fire, the intense heat finds him scalding every exposed inch of his bare skin. Gasping, he stumbles to an open door and through the smoke filled starboard passage. The ship is listing heavily, taking on more and more water as it tilts further on its keel. The force of the blast ripped off Chris's protective anti flash clothing, leaving him half naked. He staggers down the lurching passage. He could have mere minutes to get himself off the ship before it sinks. And in his current state, he has no idea which direction is the right way. 1. Then, just when he needs it, help arrives.
- [31:33]
Chris Howe
I come across a shipmate. And it was my old shipmate, Sam McFarland, who just come out the main communications office, which is next door to the Ops trip. He could see me. He didn't realize straight away it was me. He could see I was in a bad way. I mean I was just covered in black, certain grime and blood in a bad way.
- [31:56]
John Hopkins
Of all the people to help get him out of here, Sam is the one person Chris would have chosen.
- [32:01]
Chris Howe
We were good friends for the whole period that we both served. We joined at the same time and we were good friends. In fact there were some that gave us the nickname of the terrible twins.
- [32:14]
John Hopkins
Sam hooks his arm under Chris's shoulder. The physical contact on his burns is excruciating, but there's no time to stop. Sam takes his friend's weight, then half drags him down the gloomy smoky corridor until they reach a ladder to the deck above, or rather where the ladder used to be. Must have been blown away in the explosion. They're just about to look for another way up when a face appears in the opening. It's another crewmate, David. He grabs hold of Chris's arms as Sam pushes from below between them. They manage to haul the injured petty officer through the hole and onto the deck above. On they go, working their way up through the decks. Chris being pushed, pulled and carried higher and higher. Finally they reach the upper deck. It's a chaotic scene. Over 200 men in the process of abandoning a sinking ship. Most of them already have. The Coventry is listing 45 degrees to the left with her right hand starboard railing raised high out of the water. In the debris strewn ocean, scores of orange life rafts rise and fall with the swell. Chris and a handful of the remaining sailors on board clamber their way up the sloping deck to the starboard side. There, through the smoke and debris, Chris sees a face he recognizes. It's Captain Hart Dyke. His uniform disheveled and blackened by soot. He too must have escaped the operations room.
- [34:00]
Chris Howe
The captain looked at me and asked one of the people that was with him. There was very few left on board then. Captain had a few others with him. Then he got one of them to give me a white woolly seaman's jersey and then found me a life jacket and then told me just leave the ship.
- [34:18]
John Hopkins
The captain pulls the thick cream colored jersey over Chris's head and torso. Then he is strapped into the life jacket. You'll need the extra layers because it's time to abandon ship and there's one obvious route into the water.
- [34:34]
Chris Howe
It's instinctive then that your ship survival training kicks in. And this is something you do before you join any ship. You have to do it and complete it successfully before you can actually take up a position on a ship. So I assume the position of pinching your nose, feet together and just literally slide down what was then the long ship side into the cold, icy water of the, of the South Atlantic.
- [35:03]
John Hopkins
Skidding down the immense metallic side of the Coventry, Chris torpedoes into the water. There's an initial shock as he breaks the surface, followed by a wave of relief as the cold water soothes his burns. But the relief is fleeting. Immediately, the salty brine soaks through the seaman's jumper and stings his blistered skin. Chris flails in the heaving waves. Somehow he summons the strength to swim towards a life raft, thrashing his ailing body forwards. As he nears the craft, he notices one of his men struggling to get on board. Through the pain, Chris does what he can to help.
- [35:50]
Chris Howe
The state I was in, I managed to go down and got him in first. Then they pulled me in and realized I was in a bad way and made room in the center of the life raft. So they're all around the outside of this big, what is a big rubber dingy, if you like.
- [36:03]
John Hopkins
Surrounded by injured, exhausted men, Chris lies in the vessel shaking. The damage to his body is severe. He's off the ship and out of the water, but not out of the woods yet. It's about 20 minutes later. Chris remains on his back in the middle of the life raft, intense heat prickling his flesh. His eyes are shut as he enters a strange twilight zone, somewhere between sleeping and waking. A few hundred feet away, the vast battleship HMS Coventry has all but disappeared from view. Only a smoldering section of the hull remains above the waterline. Its radio masts, gun turrets and funnels protrude horizontally from the waves. Then, with a final shuddering groan, the ship tips a full 90 degrees on its keel before slowly dropping beneath the surface. Thirty minutes after the missile strike, the Coventry has met her fate. But by a stroke of luck, a sister ship, HMS Broadsword, has avoided the Skyhawk's bombs. It's there that the survivors from the Coventry are now being transported. Helicopters swoop in low, attaching ropes to the life rafts and towing them over to the untouched ship. As for Chris, he's in major trouble. Delirious with shock.
- [37:51]
Chris Howe
They tried to give me morphine, jab me with morphine, but apparently I was quite violently objecting to it for some unknown reason. I don't have a fear of needles and indeed I was one of the people on Coventry carrying around morphine to impart it to us if they needed it, but so I don't know why I did that. So I had no pain relief. My adrenaline must have been extremely high. That's all I can think of because I was in total shock and finally triaged and got me out of the life raft. They winched me up onto the deck of Broadsword where I was immediately taken to a triage station in there with the medical team.
- [38:29]
John Hopkins
The initial prognosis is bleak. The severity of Chris's burns means he will need to be moved again. They don't have the means to treat such wounds. On the ship's ward as he lies on a gurney waiting for a helicopter to fly him to a nearby hospital, it's hard to believe that Chris is one of the lucky ones. But he is. Of the 287 men on board HMS Coventry, 19 have already lost their lives. Some of them were just out of school.
- [39:01]
Chris Howe
I had one lad in my team who was only 18. Sadly, he's one. He's one of the lads that I lost and upsets me every day. The missing child is Lucia Blix, 9 years old.
- [39:19]
John Hopkins
Please let her come back home safely tonight. The kidnappers plumbed it meticulously. If money is what it takes to get her back, we're going to pay it.
- [39:30]
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- [39:31]
John Hopkins
You can't talk about this, you can't write about it are the clues.
- [39:35]
Chris Howe
The mother's hiding something. I know it.
- [39:37]
John Hopkins
To find her, tell me where she is. The stolen girl. Tonight at 10 on Freeform and stream on Hulu.
- [39:44]
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- [40:02]
John Hopkins
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- [40:10]
Chris Howe
Then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra.
- [40:13]
John Hopkins
See full terms@mintmobile.com it's nearly midnight on May 25, 1982. Chris is being flown to the SS Uganda, a former passenger liner converted into a hospital ship. Painted at the base of her funnel is a large red cross. Chris is gently removed from the helicopter and stretched through to the burns unit. He's still only semi conscious in a haze of confusion and pain. But bit by bit, his lucidity is Returning.
- [40:50]
Chris Howe
My first memory was all these lights being put onto the trolley and being wheeled down into the reception area where there's so many people in white coats around me, bright lights. And I had all these questions, people asking me questions. And one of the ones was, have you had morphine? Have you had morphine? And I wasn't speaking then. I was still in shock.
- [41:14]
John Hopkins
When medical staff work out that Chris has not received any painkillers, he has finally administered a large dose of morphine. It does the trick. He promptly drifts off to sleep. For the next two days, Chris remains in a critical condition on board the SS Uganda. He has suffered severe burns to 27% of his body's surface area, well above the threshold for what is considered to be life threatening. Infection is one of the biggest risks. His burns are treated with antibacterial cream and wrapped in cling film like bandages. What's more significant, swelling around his eyes causes him to lose his vision. For the first two days he is in hospital, Chris is completely blind.
- [42:06]
Chris Howe
I was so worried that I was blind and they had to tell me basically and console me that this is swelling and that will go down eventually your eyes will open and you won't and you will have your full eyesight. I had to believe that. I didn't believe it, to be honest. I thought they were just saying that to raise my morale, which is at this stage was pretty much rock bottom. Thoughts going through my head was just amazing. It was just how many shipmates survived? Where am I? What about my wife, boys? What do they know? Do they know I survived? I remember I had so much going on in my head. It was just crazy and I had no answers. I just wanted answers and I had no. There was nobody there to really give me those answers. The next thing they're trying to remove this seaman's jersey that had become one with my body. It was just molded into the burns, the blood and the scabs, if you like, all down my back. And they had to surgically remove that with saline solution and scalpels to get this off my back to start treating the burns. They immersed me in the bath and it was just like somebody had just put a blowtorch on my back. Hot soty water hit my back. It was incredibly painful. Was in such pain. And then the poor nurse was in tears because he could do nothing about that. Within about 30 seconds or so the pain went off, it went away. It was if I couldn't even feel it. I had burns on my back. It was so soothing.
- [43:36]
John Hopkins
As Chris is nursed back to health. The conflict continues. Over the course of the next few weeks, British troops make inroads into the islands. On June 14, the capital, Port Stanley, is captured. The Argentines surrender and a full ceasefire is declared. Britain claims victory and retains sovereignty of the islands. For Chris, it means it's finally safe for him to begin the long journey back home. Just three months later, in August, Chris returns to duty, taking a post at a naval base in Naples. This time, he's allowed to bring Margaret, the boys with him. But even as his career moves on, the events of that day, May 25, 1982, are never very far from his thoughts.
- [44:31]
Chris Howe
You get mood swings and I had recurring nightmares to deal with, certainly my early days out in Naples during a violent thunderstorm and lightning, and I woke up screaming while I was in the middle of a burning haystack. And I had that same nightmare for several months. I think for the first six months I was out there, she got me through that. She broke with a lot, definitely always helped me considerably and still does.
- [45:06]
John Hopkins
Chris continues to serve his country for another 16 years, retiring in 1998 and taking up a civilian job. Later that year, he receives a military MBE. But even after his retirement, he remains the chairman of the HMS Coventry association and a trustee of the South Atlantic Medal Association, a veterans group for those who served in the Falklands.
- [45:32]
Chris Howe
I talked to lots of veterans who are physically scarred, or often the hardest thing is mentally scarred with what went on and what they went through and what they saw and what they had to do during that conflict. And bearing in mind it was only a conflict that lasted less than two months, that's quite something. So there's a lot out there that need to be listened to and to be helped. And I feel in some small way, as a trustee and this role, I can, I can help. I can honestly say there's not a day goes by I don't think about it. I survived. I'm one of the lucky ones. I don't know. And you always get survivors guilt about why did you survive? You'll hear this from the veterans that you've seen from World War I, World War II. You hear this story a lot. Why did I survive and they didn't? None of us are heroes, we just did our jobs and that, that's a fact. But the, but the wounds that are left in the years that go on are not necessarily physical, they're mental. The mental ones are the hardest to deal with. And you can look at somebody and I look at my shitmates And I would have no idea they were suffering in any way, shape or form. But some of them are and they keep it to themselves. And there's different ways of dealing with it. And indeed I know that because the way I know, I deal with my issues and thoughts that go back to those horrible places, those dark places where I can see myself in that operations room ship going over, arm on fire, thick black smoke. And I thinking, how the hell did I ever get out of there? But I did. So you play on those thoughts, but then you get on with your life. And this could only be moments or seconds where you might go quiet in your outer and then you'll get back to mowing the grass again or mowing, doing a bit more painting or I'm doing the shopping in Tesco and or I'm planning the next holiday. Life's all about the living and you have to, you have to still live.
- [47:41]
John Hopkins
Next time on REAL Survival Stories. What's thought to be the worst train disaster in history? In December 2004, 25 year old Shanth Ravindra is in Sri Lanka spending Christmas with family. But once the festivities are over, he boards a train and heads off on a solo trip around the country's stunning coastline. But barely has his adventure begun when catastrophe strikes. On board a packed carriage, he and his fellow passengers suddenly face a ferocious assault from the ocean which overwhelms their train hundreds of miles from home. Schenf must rely on his own instincts to survive. It's a race against time. That's next time on REAL Survival Stories. Listen today without waiting a week by subscribing to NoiserPlus.
- [48:41]
Kaley Cuoco
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- [49:06]
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- [49:09]
John Hopkins
Marvel Studios Thunderbolts will take the world by storm. Yes, there's some big right out there. And you're going to help me stop it. Us.
- [49:18]
Chris Howe
Why?
- [49:18]
John Hopkins
You got some place to be on May 2nd? Avengers are gone. No one's coming to save the day their time. I think we could be the people that are coming has come being the hero. There is no higher calling.
- [49:30]
Chris Howe
Let's do this.
- [49:32]
John Hopkins
Marvel Studios Thunderbolts only in theaters May 2nd. Get tickets now. Rated PG13. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.