Diving in head-first for nature

How rescuing marine life has become a call to arms for campaigner Chris

- by LEWIS CLARKE [e-mail] @DevonLiveNews

YOU won't find many people who've looked into the eyes of a dying whale. Chris Berry has.

And it's moments like these that fuel his commitment to marine life rescue a cause that, for him, is far more than just a volunteer role.

From dramatic dolphin rescues in gale-force winds to campaigning against plastic toys that silently kill seals, Mr Berry has become a relentless force for marine conservation in the UK. As the Devon area co-ordinator for British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR), he's part medic, part mentor and part advocate.

Finding his way into marine rescue wasn't born out of childhood fantasy or academic ambition. It began, simply, with a Scuba diving qualification.

"I was completing my master Scuba diver qualification in Exmouth when I saw an advert for a BDMLR course," he recalls. That one small decision to go along changed his life.

"It seemed an amazing opportunity to make a difference helping these intelligent animals that, while living in the sea, do more to support their environment to capture carbon and produce oxygen than trees."

He became a marine mammal medic in 2007, took on the role of assistant co-ordinator in 2016, and by August 2020, was overseeing all of Devon as area co-ordinator a role that's entirely voluntary but demands the commitment of a full time job.

"It involves some dramatic rescues, yes," he says, "but also supporting a team of hundreds of medics, ensuring quality of training, fundraising, community engagement, campaign work - the list goes on."