Plaques to be unveiled commemorating the LCOCU & ‘P’ Party Divers
5 Feb 2025 - RN Clearance Diving branch legend Eamon ‘Ginge’ Fullen QGM has asked me to promulgate this announcement:
Blue Plaques at Brixham (home of the “P” Party Divers) and Appledore (home of the LCOCU frogmen) 8 and 9 May 2025
After years of trying, and with the help of local museums, historians and gaining permissions and funding, etc., I have finally managed to arrange placement of blue plaques to remember the WWII “P” (Port Clearance) Party and LCOCU (Landing Craft Obstacle Clearance Unit) frogmen.
The plaque at Brixham will be unveiled during the 80th anniversary of VE Day at 0900 on the 8th May 2025 and the plaque at Appledore at 1400 on the 9th May 2025. Both plaques will be unveiled by our very own Captain Al Nekrews OBE QGM RN. Any Clearance Divers past or present are most welcome to attend. Please get in touch for further information.
“P” Party Divers
The divers who cleared the ports and harbours of bombs and mines first trained at Forest Gate in London, then briefly in Cumbria before finding a true home at Brixham in what became known as HMS VERNON(D). Several Naval parties were formed and these 150 or so officers and men became some of the most highly decorated of WWII. The wartime “P” Parties were disbanded in November of 1945 and HMS VERNON(D) was closed.
A couple of small “P” Parties were formed after the war for the Palestinian troubles before, on the 3rd December 1948, an Admiralty Signal decreed the start of a new branch within the Royal Navy; the Clearance Divers. The first course started at HMS LOCHINVAR on 16 May 1949.
LCOCU Frogmen
The predecessors of the LCOCUs, the Boom Commandos, were based at HMS APPLEDORE from mid-1942. It was as late as December 1943 that the powers that be thought that frogmen might be required on D-Day and training began in earnest in diving and bomb disposal for the 120 frogmen.
Despite information on the web that states frogmen landed first on D-Day (including our very own RNCDA website) the LCOCU frogmen did not land first (or before the invasion). Detailed D-Day reports clearly state that the LCOCUs were scheduled to land at H-Hour +20 minutes. Although one unit through error did land first by one minute or so. Nevertheless, landing at H-Hour +20 minutes is a pretty ringside seat in my mind and the actions of the frogmen helping clear obstacles on the beach and shallow water on D-Day and the days that followed undoubtedly saved lives.
These images relate to the RN & RM LCOCU divers trained at HMS APPLEDORE in North Devon.
These images relate to the RN ‘P’ Party divers trained at HMS VERNON(D) in Brixham, South Devon. The ‘D’ stood for Dartmouth where the unit’s accounts were held.
I’m sure all members of our community will join me in congratulating Ginge on his fine achievement.
Between us, we have had the privilege of meeting several ‘P’ Party & LCOCU divers, and associated WWII veterans of Normandy, all now sadly deceased.
