UK NEWS
SILENCE FALLS IN SHEFFIELD AS ROYAL MARINE IS LAID TO REST
HERO: Royal Marine Lance Corporal Jamie Fellows
By Emily Garnham for express.co.uk
SHEFFIELD’S normally bustling city centre was brought to a standstill today, as hundreds of shoppers stood in silence for the funeral of a Royal Marine killed in Afghanistan.
Lance Corporal Steven Fellows - known to all as Jamie - died earlier this month from injuries suffered when his Jackal patrol vehicle hit a roadside bomb.
The 26-year-old, who was a member of 45 Commando, was described by his company commander as “tough and courageous”.
Major Ross Preston said: “I consider myself very lucky to have known and served with Jamie Fellows.
“He embodied everything that it is to be a Royal Marines Commando. Tough and courageous under fire, Jamie Fellows was an example to his comrades, fearlessly taking the fight to the enemy.”
The coffin, which was draped in a Union Flag and with L/Cpl Fellows’ cap on top, was carried into Sheffield Cathedral by a party of his colleagues.
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TRAGIC: His funeral took place today at Sheffield Cathedral with full military honours
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Scores of local people stood in silence around the square to pay their respects as bells rang out across the city centre.
In a statement released today his wife Natalie said: “I am completely and utterly devastated and my life is so empty without Jamie.
“He was my reason for living and at this moment I have never felt so alone despite the love and support of my family and friends.
“Since I learnt of this terrible tragedy, even the simple mundane daily tasks, no longer have the same significance without knowing that Jamie is here to be part of my life.
“I cannot imagine how normality can ever return, or how the pain could ever recede without Jamie, my husband, my best friend and my soul mate standing by my side.”
L/Cpl Fellows joined the Royal Marines in 2006 at the age of 24 where he excelled in training and was awarded the King's Badge as best recruit in his Troop. He was one of four Royal Marines killed on December 12.
Sergeant John Manuel, Corporal Marc Birch and Marine Damian Davies were all killed by a suspected suicide bomber, in a separate incident on the same day.
