SOS from the Atlantic – When a Radio Listener Became Part of a Rescue

Sometimes, the most memorable moments in amateur radio have nothing to do with making a contact for a contest, chasing a rare DX station or collecting another QSL card.

Occasionally, simply being there and listening can make an extraordinary difference.

One of our club members recently shared a fascinating piece of radio history dating back to January 1978, when, as a short-wave listener, he unexpectedly found himself hearing an emergency call from a ship in serious trouble in the Atlantic.

The story was subsequently published in the September 1979 issue of a radio publication under the headline “SOS from the Atlantic”, and records how his actions helped bring the emergency to the attention of the appropriate authorities.

Hearing the Mayday

On the night of 27 January 1978, at approximately 2100 GMT, Dennis Shields was at his home in Westbury, Wiltshire, listening to his FRG-7 receiver.

Dennis was a keen short-wave listener and was registered as British Receiving Station G-15318.

While tuning across the bands, he heard a distress call — a Mayday from the Spanish ship Marbell, whose radio callsign was EEZK.

The vessel had lost both of its engines and was drifting helplessly in heavy weather in the Atlantic.

Dennis quickly realised that, remarkably, he appeared to be the only person who had heard the distress transmission. Recognising the seriousness of the situation, he immediately reported the details to the British authorities via Portishead Radio.

The information was passed on to Boulogne Radio, which established two-way communication with Marbell on 2182 kHz within four minutes.

Unfortunately, despite the efforts that followed, the outcome was tragic.

Before a full rescue operation could be mounted, Marbell ran aground and subsequently sank off the Cíes Islands, near the entrance to Vigo Bay on the north-west coast of Spain.

The ship was carrying a crew of 36. Tragically, 27 crew members lost their lives, while nine managed to survive by swimming ashore.

Recognition for a Radio Listener

The significance of Dennis's actions was not forgotten.

Later that year, on 25 September 1978, Dennis and his wife Margaret were invited to the Spanish Embassy in Belgrave Square, London, where Dennis was presented with a Pegasus Award of Merit by the Spanish Ambassador, His Excellency the Marquis de Perinat.

The award recognised the part Dennis had played in bringing the distress call to the attention of the authorities.

The original article records that the rescue information was also reported to the authorities in Spain, including the Under Secretary of the Merchant Navy, the Directorate General of Navigation and the Sub-Directorate of Maritime Security.

The Importance of a Good Antenna

There was another interesting technical aspect to the story.

Dennis explained that he had been experiencing interference from neighbouring television sets, something that could easily have prevented him from hearing the distress transmission.

Fortunately, he had recently obtained a special trap dipole, made by fellow radio amateur Richard Holman, G2DYM. The antenna considerably reduced the interference and allowed the SOS transmission to come through loud and clear.

It is a wonderful reminder that, particularly in the days before today's sophisticated receivers and digital filtering, the combination of a good antenna, a capable receiver and an attentive operator could make a very real difference.

From Listener to Radio Amateur

The original article ends with an interesting glimpse into Dennis's ambitions at the time.

When asked what he intended to do next, he explained:

“I am now studying for the Radio Amateurs Exam so that I can speak over the air, as well as listen.”

It seems that hearing that Mayday had done more than provide Dennis with a remarkable listening experience — it helped encourage him towards becoming a radio amateur himself.

A Remarkable Piece of Radio History

Nearly fifty years later, it is remarkable to look back at this account and realise that an ordinary evening spent listening to a receiver resulted in one listener becoming an important link in an international maritime emergency.

For today's amateurs, surrounded by digital communications, satellite systems, mobile phones and sophisticated emergency networks, it is easy to forget just how important a vigilant radio operator could once be.

The story is also a reminder of one of the fundamental strengths of radio: someone, somewhere, is listening.

We are grateful to our club member for sharing this fascinating piece of his personal radio history with us and for giving permission for the original article to be reproduced on the club website.