Rescue heroes honoured

LIFEBOAT crews have been honoured for rescuing a stricken fishing boat skipper after he was crushed by a wave in rough seas.

- By LORNA HUGHES [e-mail] @TeessideLive

Darren Greenwood suffered multiple serious injuries when the wave caught his boat while he was hauling his catch up 15 miles off the coast of Hartlepool. He was pinned against steelwork, leaving him with a crushed leg, dislocated shoulder, broken ribs, damaged teeth, fractured collar bone and two collapsed lungs.

A crew member called the Coastguard for assistance at just before 9am on March 22, last year, and the all-weather lifeboat Betty Huntbatch was tasked by Humber Coastguard to launch.

It was alongside the fishing boat 20 minutes later, where crew members Craig Pinder and Jordan Craddy assessed and treated Darren. The Coastguard helicopter was also tasked to attend the incident and a paramedic was winched down to the all-weather lifeboat and then transferred to the fishing boat to assist.