Tributes to Sunderland submariner Anthony Huntrod at memorial service on 16th anniversary of his death

Twenty-year-old Anthony Huntrod, of Town End Farm, was killed alongside crewmate Paul McCann, 32, when a self-contained oxygen generator (Scog), exploded on board nuclear sub HMS Tireless on exercise in March 2007.

To mark the 16th anniversary of their deaths on Tuesday, March 21, a service was held at the new Submariners’ Memorial at the National Arboretum in Staffordshire.

Standards dipped

Led by the Rev. David Chadwick from St Paul’s Church in Ryhope, the ceremony was attended by Anthony’s parents, Alan Huntrod and Brenda Gooch, as well as members of their family, and Paul’s parents Brian and Pauline McCann.

The families were supported by members of the three North East Branches of the Submariners Association; the Derbyshire Submariners and the Royal Naval Association, as well as some former crewmates who served with the pair aboard HMS TIRELESS.

The group travelled by coach, organised by the Sunderland Branch, with assistance from the Royal Navy Royal Marines Charity, The Submarine Family and Keith’s Coaches.

Branch Standards were in attendance and were dipped as a mark of respect in memory of both Anthony and Paul during the ceremony.

Unveiled by the Duke of Cambridge in May 2022, the Submariners Memorial provides a focal point for all who serve/have served in the Royal Navy’s Submarine Service since it was established in 1901.

Catalogue of errors

The memorial - two halves of a conning tower split, allowing people to walk through, passing the statue of a submariner as they do – serves as a tribute to the 5,349 men lost in Royal Navy submarines in 121 years of the Silent Service, few of whom have graves for family and comrades to visit.

:: After a six-week inquest, Sunderland coroner Derek Winter ruled that cost-cutting measures formed part of a catalogue of errors which contributed to the death of Anthony Huntrod and Paul McCann, but the Health and Safety Executive said it was unable to prosecute any individual or organisations.

The HSE said Scog firing only took place off shore, which meant the accident had been outside its remit, despite the MoD admitting contamination of the devices had happened on shore – which caused misfires at sea.