Fireman receives Nato medal

He unloaded huge planes carrying vital aid for refugees

A firefighter from Leicestershire has been awarded a medal by Nato.

Mick Jackson was praised for his work in Macedonia where he made sure aid got through to refugees.

He is stationed at Loughborough Fire Station but is also a member of the UK Fire Services Search and Rescue Team.

Mr Jackson helped to unload from massive Russian planes, working around the clock to take off supplies and get them to the refugee camps.

'Dragged tents'

The firefighter was sent Macedonia in May 1999 to help with the aid mission during the Balkan crisis.

He said: "We unloaded everything.

"One of the biggest things was tents, 70 kilogram tents.

"You couldn't even lift part of the tents so we made hooks and dragged them.

"We unloaded everything from vehicles, to rice to sugar, anything and everything."

Mr Jackson has been given the medal by Nato to mark his humanitarian work.

Since his Balkan trip he has also helped in the aftermath of an earthquake in Turkey in January 2000.

As a member of a specialist team he is on standby to answer calls from all around the world.