Isle of Man bomb disposal expert laid to rest after he died in Ukraine
Joshua Stokes reports from Peel.
The funeral of a bomb disposal expert from the Isle of Man who died while working in Ukraine has been held in Peel. Chris Garrett died in May 2025 after suffering severe injuries while dismantling an improvised explosive device.
Hundreds gathered on the Isle of Man for the funeral of a bomb disposal volunteer killed in Ukraine.
A number of Ukrainians made the trip to the island to celebrate the life of a man who'd dedicated his life to help make their country safer.
Chris, fondly known as Swampy, had dedicated years to clearing landmines in the country after the Russian invasion in February 2022.
He was be laid to rest in his home town of Peel.
Chris met his partner Courtney Pollock while in Ukraine where she worked as a volunteer paramedic from the US.
She said: "He will forever be somebody in Ukraine and somebody note worthy and somebody who is honoured and respected. There has been countless lives saved because of his work, even if it wasn't directly his work it was those he trained"
Chris and Courtney have a one-year-old daughter. Courtney said she will keep Chris' memory alive
"I've made promises to him that she's going to grow up knowing everything about her Dad and she will be able to do all the things that we want her to do, travel the world and just be a good human"
A fundraiser launched to support the family of the 40-year-old, raised more than 10,000 US dollars (£7,543) within a day of being launched.
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