South Yorkshire Times – Saturday 1 March 1952
Denaby Navy Man is Back Home from Korea
After serving off the coast of Korea in the destroyer “Comus” for 18 months, Stoker William George Smith (29), returned on Sunday to his home at 34, Wadworth Street, Denaby, for 63 days’ leave.
Stoker Smith joined the Navy ten years ago and saw action off Italy during the war. He attended Conisbrough Modern School and worked for five years as a haulage hand at Denaby Colliery before joining up. His father is a collier at Denaby and he has two sisters.
Stoker Smith said the ship on which he served was hit only once during the 18 months.
“That was on August 23rd last year,” he told a South Yorkshire Times reporter this week. “A plane attacked the ship, and one of our company was killed.”
Stoker Smith said that on the whole he didn’t have a very hard time out there.
“The Communists’ problem is that they have no ships like we have, and,” he continued, “we had little resistance.”
Most of the time the destroyer in which he served passed up and down the Korean coast, bombarding the coast.