World
1News

Veteran, 99, marks 80th anniversary of Dunkirk evacuation in small ceremony amid Covid-19

May 27, 2020

Today marks the 80th anniversary of the Dunkirk evacuation, when a flotilla of small ships rescued more than 300,000 Allied troops from the beaches in northern France during World War II.

Despite this year’s annual gathering of boats being cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a small British Royal Navy ceremony went ahead, the BBC reports.

Lawrence Churcher, a 99-year-old veteran who was at Dunkirk eight decades ago, was at Portsmouth Naval Memorial today to mark the occasion.

On that fateful day in May 1940 on the Western Front, Mr Churcher's only thought was to evacuate from the beach from the fast-approaching Nazi troops.

"I didn't think about my brothers. My only thought was, 'Well, how am I going to get back?'"

Amid the confusion, Mr Churcher ran into his two brothers, who were also serving in the army.

"Relief. Just relief, because there were so many soldiers there, you know, and continuous aircraft coming over us and and bombs and things," he said.

All three were rescued by the ships sent from the UK.

SHARE ME

More Stories