Town honours dead Royal Marines

The town paid its own public tribute to the dead Royal Marines

Hundreds of people lined the streets of a Wiltshire town to pay their respects to two Royal Marines who were killed in Afghanistan before Christmas.

The bodies of Cpl Robert Deering, 33, from Birmingham, and L/Cpl Benjamin Whatley, 20, from Norfolk, were flown to RAF Lyneham.

Their coffins were draped in flags and driven through Wootton Bassett.

Cpl Deering had been serving with the Commando Logistic Regiment, and L/Cpl Whatley with 42 Commando.

'Lion's heart'

A crowd of about 200 people formed in tribute as the town came to a standstill as the coffins were en-route to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.

The public tributes began spontaneously in Wootton Bassett when repatriation flights switched to RAF Lyneham from Brize Norton in Oxfordshire last year.

Cpl Deering was killed in an explosion on 21 December as he approached the wreckage of an armoured vehicle that had been blown up in Lashkar Gah, Helmand Province.

Cpl Deering and L/Cpl Whatley died just days before Christmas

He went to assess the damage when a second explosive was detonated, killing him.

Cpl Deering, from Sheldon, was a vehicle mechanic for 10 years with Commando Logistic Regiment (CLR) of the marines, based in north Devon. He had recently moved in with his fiancee, Gemma.

At the time of his death, his commanding officer Colonel Andy Maynard,said he "had the heart of a lion and the courage to match".

L/Cpl Whatley, from King's Lynn, served with Devon-based 42 Commando and died on Christmas Eve from enemy fire while on a mission in the Nad-e-Ali district, near Lashkar Gah, in Helmand province.

In a statement, his family said: "Ben was a vibrant, happy person who had an unbridled enthusiasm for life.

"He was so proud to be a Royal Marine, his death creates an irreplaceable loss for all his family and friends."