Tributes to 'outstanding' Fleetwood fisherman

Steve Welsh, who lived on Broadway, overcame a childhood illness which left him disabled to achieve his dream of going to sea and then went further by becoming a skipper and owning his own boats.

Continuing to fish until just two years ago, by which time there were just a handful of vessels left of Fleetwood's once thriving fishing industry, he sold his fish directly to eateries including the highly rated Twelve in Thornton and Fleetwood's Trafalgar Restaurant.

For many years he was chairman of the Fleetwood Inshore Fishermen's Association, lobbying the Government to look out for the beleaguered industry, latterly fighting to help small boats whose fishing grounds were affected by encroaching windfarms.

Tributes have been paid to the retired trawlerman, for whom the Fleetwood RNLI flag flew at half mast when the lifeboat team heard of his death last Friday, February 5, after a short illness.

Fleewood RNLI put up a post on its Facebook site which said: "As well as being chairman of the Association, Steve was a big supporter of our lifeboat station.

"Steve helped arrange the original sail past of fishing boats on Lifeboat Day in the ‘80’s and his family have also been involved with fundraising for the RNLI in Fleetwood.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends."

Steve leaves wife Linda, 73, who used to own the Bridal Cottage in Fleetwood, daughter Amanda, 48, son Steve Junior,46 and grandchildren Liam, 13 and Kacey, 10.

Son Steve, of Skippool, Thornton, said: "Dad was a top fisherman who did one of the toughest jobs in the world with a smile on his face.

"He only retired two years ago and that was become his fishing vessel had finally had enough

"He could hardly walk five yards, he couldn't strand straight and he couldn't swim but he achieved a lot in the industry and was well respected.

"He was one of the last surviving men of steel, he was an outstanding individual."

Born into a fishing family in 1947, Steve Sr fished out of Fleetwood nearly all his life, despite physical difficulties from contracting polio at an early age.

The illness, believed to have been contracted when he fell into a farmland pond aged five just a short time before a vaccine became available, left him permanently crippled in both legs and needing metal calipers to walk.

But he was determined to go to sea and never let this setback get in the way.

At the age of 17 he convinced his father, a successful fish merchant, to lend him £1,000 to buy his own vessel, the Kathleen.

Despite doubts that he would be able to cope with the physical rigours of life at sea, he proved many people wrong, recruiting an experienced skipper, Phil Cropper, to show him the ropes.

Having then spent time with his dad helping in the family fish selling businesses, he returned to sea at 21 when he became skipper of the 50-foot trawler Sincere.

Later he bought the 70-foot Colinne and continued to land sole, plaice, roker , whiting and langoustines out in the Irish Sea, as far up as the Cumbrian coast.

His funeral is to be held next Thursday, February 18, at St Wulstan's RC Church, Fleetwood.