Shaldon-born navy diver Jay O' Donnell, 33, who helped mastermind the rescue of crewmen from the stricken MSC Napoli last Thursday, has been praised by villagers, writes Hannah Taylor. Petty officer O'Donnell, based at RNAS Culdrose, was dragged through appalling seas to reach the life raft and haul 26 crewmen to safety. The former pupil of Shaldon Primary School and Teignmouth Community College is to be commended for his bravery by Shaldon Parish Council. Petty officer O'Donnell, who now lives in Camborne, returned to Shaldon with his family this week to visit proud mum Pat. The story of the daring rescue in high seas and gale force winds was beamed across the world. Petty officer O'Donnell, a diver and air crewman, was on a day off when the call came in. He was onboard the second helicopter that was called to the stricken vessel. 'The first helicopter was having trouble reaching the life raft. 'So attached to the winch, I managed to get a handhold on the raft and climbed on board. 'I did a head count to check whether there were any casualties in the water, tried to lift spirits and assessed for any casualties.' A steady line was fixed between the two aircraft as crewmen were airlifted to safety in the 90-minute mission. It is the biggest operation undertaken by Petty officer O'Donnell since he joined up aged 17. 'It is the biggest rescue because of the amount of people involved, but there have been times when we have been called out at night, right out to sea with fisherman suffering horrific injuries. 'But it is nice that this has brought what we do into the public eye and we are there at any time,' he said. Petty officer O'Donnell played down the heroic epitaph that has been attached to the rescue men. 'It is nice that people have phoned and emailed, but I don't know about that terminology. It is what we are trained to do,' he said. Petty officer O'Donnell is the son of the late Bernie O'Donnell, a former parish council chairman. District councillor for Shaldon, Chris Clarance, said petty officer O'Donnell was the 'hero of the Napoli'. 'He is a lovely lad and a Shaldon boy through and through. People are tremendously proud of his efforts,' he said.