by Beth Robson

A man who survived horrific injuries from the Deal bombing, and lived for another 21 years, has died.

Douglas Pullan, a civilian, was six feet away when a bomb planted by the IRA exploded in the gymnasium at the Cavalry Barracks at 8.27 on the morning of September 22, 1989, killing 11 Royal Marines bandsmen. It shook Deal and angered the whole country.

Mr Pullan suffered severe injuries to his brain, heart, lungs, kidneys and liver. His left arm had to be amputated, he broke a leg, lost most of his hearing and had numerous operations.

An induced coma lasted until November 6, 1989 – 45 days after the blast. Doctors told the family it would be a miracle if he survived. And if he did, he would almost certainly be badly brain damaged.

But despite this he fought through, living for another 21 years after the atrocity.

Mr Pullan, who lived with wife Andrea at Lighthouse Road, St Margaret’s, died of a heart attack, aged 83, on August 11 at Kent and Canterbury Hospital.

In a letter sent to the Mercury, which includes detailed diary extracts by two of Doug’s sons, Ross described his stepfather as a "brave and courageous man."

The timing of his death and the release of the memoirs coincides with the 21st anniversary of the bombing.

As Mr Pullan, a former Royal Marine boy bugle drummer and Tilmanstone miner, was so close to the bomb when it exploded, it inspired the belief among his family that it was a miracle he survived.

The diary, compiled mostly by his son Alan, includes some of his stepbrother Ross’s memories of their father’s struggle to beat the IRA and live, and the effect that watching his battle had on the family.