Plaque unveiling for George Medal heroes (Bridlington and Hull) on 7 May 2023
2nd May 2023
A double plaque unveiling is due to take place on Sunday 7 May 2023 to honour two recipients of the George Medal that has been a long time coming.
Kenneth Cooke and Colin Armitage were on board the cargo ship Lulworth Hill when she was torpedoed and sunk by an Italian submarine on 19 March 1943; 14 survivors found themselves on a raft and another man was taken prisoner of war.
Fifty days later only Ken and Colin were left alive when HMS Rapid rescued them, their terrible ordeal of starvation and watching their shipmates die one by one leaving them close to death themselves.
Now, there will be two blue plaques unveiled at two different locations on the same day, the 80th anniversary of this remarkable rescue.
At 1100 at Minerva Pier in Hull the family of Colin Armitage will unveil the plaque close to his home village and overlooking where the ship sailed from on her final voyage. This plaque was paid for by UK Operational Support Services, a local security company.
At 1500, at Bridlington Harbour, the Kenneth Cooke plaque will be unveiled, at the moment not sure if the family are going to be there due to distance but we hope they will. This was paid for by Bridlington Tourism Association.
