A few years ago, my wife and I visited Kefalonia (scene of
Captain Corelli's Mandolin) in the Ionian Sea and stayed in a hotel in Sami. I couldn't help but notice a photo of the previous HMS DARING on the counter in reception. On enquiring, I found out that she had been the first on the scene after an earthquake flattened all but one village on the island in 1953. Argostoli, the island's capital, even has a street named after her.
When a ship's company reunion was held in Sami in 2003, I was told by the hotel manager that a local man had tears in his eyes as he recounted how the sailors had pulled his pregnant mother out of the ruins of her home. But for this rescue, he would not have been around to tell the tale. As can be seen from the video below, the RAF was heavily involved as well but even after 50 years, this single act had achieved more lasting good for the UK's reputation than any flurry of foreign aid money.