Daughter Of HMS Wakeful's Only Surviving Soldier Speaks Of Shock Revelation

The daughter of a Dunkirk soldier has spoken of her amazement after learning her father was the only survivor of a torpedo which killed 639 other people.

 Stanley Patrick was the only soldier who escaped HMS Wakeful with his life.

The ship was selected to support Operation Dynamo, the name given to the evacuation of allied troops from Dunkirk, on 26 May 1940.

While carrying out the evacuation, Wakeful was torpedoed.

Luckily, Stanley had been sent onto Wakeful’s deck to keep a lookout. Whilst he was there, he decided to have a cigarette- a decision which would save his life.

Patrick’s daughter Leslie spoke of her reaction to finding out that her farther was the only surviving soldier on board whilst watching a documentary at home:

‘We both looked at each other and I went cold […] we realised at that point that my dad was the only soldier who survived’.

As it turns out, not even Stanley himself knew he was the only survivor, something which Leslie believes is a ‘good thing’.