the late afternoon of August 16, 1918, the British tanker Mirlo
made her way along the coast of North Carolina's Outer Banks
with a full load of oil. Without warning, the day erupted into
explosions and flames. Mirlo had been hit by a torpedo fired by
a German U-boat. captain and most of the Mirlo's crew made it
into the tanker's lifeboats, but further explosions capsized one
of the boats, and trapped two others behind a wall of flames and
debris that spread over the water. 1874 station next to the
ocean for the crew that day, the men manning the life-saving
station at Chicamacomico on Hatteras Island witnessed the attack
and were soon on the way to the rescue. Launching into heavy
seas, John Midgett and his men succeeded in bringing 42 men who
survived the explosion to shore through the burning oil. For
their efforts that day, they became the most decorated members
ever of the Coast Guard and Life-Saving Service, receiving the
U.S. Treasury's Gold Lifesaving Medal, the Silver Cup from the
British Trade Commi