Cruising Talk - View Single Post - Seabourn Spirit crewmembers honoured for their bravery by HRH the Queen today

**Ally** · 05-16-2007, 01:04 PM

Two men who battled pirates to save a passenger cruise ship from attack have been honoured by the Queen for their bravery.

Michael Groves and Som Bahadur Gurung fought off an assault on the Seabourn Spirit despite coming under fire from rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns.

Mr Groves jetted the pirates with a power hose, forcing them to retreat.

The cruise liner, carrying 300 crew and passengers, was targeted by insurgents 100 miles off the coast of Somalia in November 2005.

The Queen told the men they were "very courageous" as she handed over their awards at Buckingham Palace.

Mr Groves, 41, from the West Midlands, collected the Queen's Gallantry Medal and Som Bahadur Gurung, originally from Nepal, received the Queen's Commendation for Bravery.

Both men, who were working for Seabourn Cruise Lines at the time, were injured in the attack and are still recovering from the ordeal.

But Mr Groves is now involved in a legal dispute. He was a security and safety officer for Seabourn Cruise Lines, but is now no longer working for the company.

"As far as I know, I have not been employed by them for some time," he said.

He has launched a damages claim against Miami-based ship owner Carnival, accusing bosses of negligence.

They are reported to have claimed that his employment was terminated after he chose not to return to work.

Mr Grove said of his experience during the attack: "We should never have been put in that situation."

He said a hearing is due to take place in California in September, but declined to talk further about the case.

"We're still recovering. Shock waves from the Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) - the alarm we activated - the blast has damaged my hearing. I have tinnitus."

Mr Groves was also knocked to the deck by a rocket blast.

He described how passengers were screaming and how at one stage he thought two pirates had managed to get on board.

"We thought we were done for," he admitted.

Mr Groves was called to the deck to investigate two boats approaching the ship - one carrying a group of men armed with rocket launchers and machine guns.

He was fired at, but quickly unwound a high pressure hose and aimed the jet at the attackers, forcing them to withdraw.

They returned soon after and began firing rockets and rifles at the liner.

Mr Groves was knocked to the deck and suffered injuries to his ear.

As Mr Gurung was trying to activate the Long Range Acoustic Device, he was knocked unconscious after being hit by a bullet, with shrapnel striking his upper body.

He was dragged to safety by Mr Groves, who returned to switch on the 150-decibel sonic beam alarm.

After about 30 minutes, the pirates, who were trying to board the ship, were forced to retreat.

Mr Groves said after the ceremony: "The Queen asked me when it was and she recalled it. She said she had read the citation and was surprised we only had a hose and LRAD device on board. She said it was very courageous."

(Daily Mail Online)