A retired firefighter has received an award on behalf of the Royal Humane Society for saving an elderly man’s life.

Bobby Moore, whose fire dervice career ran from March 1989 to July 2017, was presented with the award during a ceremony at the the Lieutenant Governor’s house in Onchan.

It was while Bobby was out for a walk with his family on August 25 last year that he noticed an elderly man had slipped between two boats in Douglas harbour.

The former Royal Navy sailor acted immediately, saving the man’s life by supporting and tying lines around him until the emergency services arrived.

A successful application to the Royal Humane Society, a British charity that grants awards for life-saving acts of bravery, was made by chief fire officer Kevin Groom.

Lieutenant Governor Sir Richard Gozney presented the award to Bobby, who also received an illuminated address for his career in the service.

The event also saw station officer Brian Quirk and leading firefighter Andrew Dugdale receive long service and good conduct medals after serving 20 years each.

Home Affairs Minister Bill Malarkey MHK, who attended the event along with department member Dr Alex Allison MHK and chief executive Mark Kelly, said: ’The island has a fire and rescue service to be proud of and I’m delighted to be here today to see firefighters rewarded for their dedication and bravery.

’The instinctive and selfless way Bobby Moore reacted to help save a man’s life last year has been rightly honoured - despite being retired, he remains a credit to his colleagues and the service itself.’