IT might be 25 years ago since the Falklands War, but the mental scars remain for retired Navy medic Steven Butterworth, even though he escaped injury.

Steve, from Ramsbottom, was a 22-year-old catering accountant in the Royal Navy when he was deployed as a medic on the landing ship HMS Intrepid at the start of the South Atlantic conflict.

Under constant enemy air attack and moored in San Carlos Water - better known as Bomb Alley - Steve and his colleagues worked tirelessly in horrendous conditions to save the lives of British - and Argentinian -soldiers and sailors injured in battle.

Steve recalled: "Some of the sights will stay with me for ever: men with burns making them unrecognisable, our Marines with limbs missing and gunshot wounds; even young Argentines with severe wounds and treating them no differently than our own.

"However, even during all this blood and tragedy, you cannot forget either the resolve, the humour and the determination of our troops to get the job done."

Steve had already completed three years at sea and was due for shore operations when his orders came through that he was to join HMS Intrepid. The ship was undergoing decommissioning at the outbreak of the Falklands War but was brought back into commission, and her ships company recalled, to form part of the task group.

With elements of 3 Commando Brigade oboard, Intrepid took part in the amphibious landings at San Carlos Water. Following the successful capture of Stanley, the surrender of the Falkland Islands by the Argentinians president, Leopoldo Galtieri, took place on board Intrepid.

Steve, accompanied by his wife Maria and their daughter Hannah (19), was among those who gathered in London on June 17 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Falklands campaign which cost 255 servicemen and women their lives.

He said: "The event was a memorable day in more ways than one. It was a day to reflect, to remember all the lads who didn't make it home; a day to catch up with old friends and talk about the good times as well as the bad. It was a day when families watched with pride as we paraded on Horse Guards then marched down The Mall.

"Never in one place will you have seen so many grown men with at least one tear in their eyes, paying tribute to each other, to the fallen, to Margaret Thatcher, not everyone's cup of tea but still a leader under difficult circumstances, and perhaps most of all, to our families and loves ones who stayed at home doing all the worrying for us.

"If you were to speak to our families and friends, most would say we were changed men when we got home. Of course we were changed. It is impossible not to having gone through that: moods, nightmares and depression all being symptoms. You live with it and crack on. Let's just say I've had my moments."

Steve is proud to have served his country and done his bit to help the casualties of war and putting his own life on the line to protect the Falklands from the Argentine invaders. Now a long distance lorry driver living with his family in Ramsbottom, he is also proud that his son, Adam, is following in his footsteps.

Adam is a chef in the Royal Navy and has already completed one tour of duty in Iraq and is due to return to the war zone at Christmas.

"His role in Iraq will be that of a boarding party member, like the role carried out by the soldiers and sailors recently captured by Iranian armed forces," said Steve. "He is due to go again at Christmas to serve on board HMS Kent. No doubt his mum will sit at home worrying until he arrives home safely. Nothing new there for Maria but the attitude is, just like it was for us 25 years ago, we have a job to do."