Lorna Siggins
Lorna Siggins is a print and radio reporter, and a former Irish Times western correspondent. She is the author of Search and Rescue: True stories of Irish Air-Sea Rescues and the Loss of R116 (2022); Everest Callling (1994) on the first Irish Everest expedition; Mayday! Mayday! (2004); and Once Upon a Time in the West: the Corrib gas controversy (2010). She is also co-producer with Sarah Blake of the Doc on One "Miracle in Galway Bay" which recently won a Celtic Media Award
Sinn Féin has criticised the Government’s handling of a seven-year-old agreement with Britain on Rockall after an Irish fishing vessel was inspected by a Scottish patrol earlier this week. Sinn Féin fisheries and marine spokesman Pádraig MacLochlainn was reacting to…
A newly built 150m oil tanker which ran aground close to the mouth of Lough Foyle earlier this morning has been refloated. As Afloat reported earlier, the 11,826 tonne Thun Liffey was leaving Lisahally terminal in Derry for Milford Haven…
Efforts are underway to refloat a newly built 150m oil tanker which ran aground close to the mouth of Lough Foyle earlier this morning. The 11,826 tonne Thun Liffey was leaving Lisahally terminal in Derry for Milford Haven when the…
EU Has Created "New Fisheries Policy" with Brexit, Irish Fishing Leader Says
28th December 2020 Fishing
A “Brexit concession” by the EU to Britain on fish stocks should be extended to all coastal states including Ireland, according to a leading Irish industry organisation. The Irish South and West Fish Producers’ Organisation (IS&WFPO) says that the EU…
Film Maker Bob Quinn & the 'Atlantean' Docu, Part of Galway Film Fleadh’s Solstice Festival
24th December 2020 Wavelength Podcast
Atlantean conjures up images of sea serpents, mythical peoples living under the sea and it is also the title of a fascinating project which Aosdána member and filmmaker Bob Quinn embarked on in the early 1980s. The outcome was three…
Loss of Six Dun Laoghaire Men in German Bombing of Lightship Remembered
21st December 2020 Dun Laoghaire Harbour News
Six Dun Laoghaire mariners never came home for Christmas 80 years ago, when their lightship was attacked and sunk by a German bomber aircraft off the Wexford coast. Now, the grand-daughter of one of those lost has appealed to other…
A “giant-size” towel collage has been spread out at Blackrock’s Seapoint shoreline in Dublin Bay on Saturday to highlight the need for action over Dublin Bay water quality. Open water swimmers suspended hostilities over whether dry robes or towels were…
As Brexit negotiations continue over fisheries, comments made by former taoiseach Bertie Ahern on the issue have angered a leading Irish fishing industry spokesman Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation (KFO) chief executive Sean O’Donoghue said he had contacted Minister for Marine Charlie…
There has been a mixed Irish reaction to this year’s EU fish council, after a three-month “rollover” of catch allocations was agreed to facilitate ongoing Brexit negotiations. EU ministers agreed to allocate total allowable catches (TACs) and quotas based on…
Solution to Europe's "Broken" Rivers Identified in Research Involving UCC
17th December 2020 Marine Science
Europe has some of the "most fragmented" rivers in the world with at least 1.2 million instream barriers, according to a newly published study. An EU project involving University College Cork (UCC) team of researchers has identified thousands of large…
The National Monuments Service says it has resolved the mystery of a shipwreck off Co Sligo's Streedagh strand where three Armada ships are known to have foundered in 1588. Research has confirmed that a wreck of a vessel off Streedagh…
Octopus fishing in Tarawa, accidentally sinking a Royal Navy RIB, monitoring the Loch Ness monster and deep diving to 287 feet... That’s just a small taste of adventures experienced by scientist, author, and film producer Peter Vine, who lives in…
New Film Shows How Tree Went From Oak to Boat in Iron Age Replica Project
14th December 2020 Historic Boats
An oak tree’s transformation from trunk to replica iron age boat on Connemara's Lough Corrib has been filmed as part of a University College Cork (UCC) project. Entitled "A New Logboat for Lough Corrib: The Pallasboy Project", the film was…
In Galway city, the RNLI inshore lifeboat rescued a man caught in rising tide while out walking at Ballyloughane beach near Renmore. A member of the public spotted the man who had taken refuge on Hare island at about 11…
Irish Whale & Dolphin Group Publishes Policy Document on Offshore Wind
12th December 2020 Marine Wildlife
The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) has recommended that a single body should handle all mitigation measures to reduce impact of offshore wind farms on marine mammals. A policy document published by the NGO includes recommendations to ensure offshore…
A “heroic herring” which manages to avoid hungry, cod, dolphins and supertrawlers is the “star” of an online game released by a non-governmental organisation in advance of next week’s EU fisheries council. The game entitled “Ocean Uprising” has been devised…
High Numbers of Sperm Whales Counted off Irish West Coast in New Study
10th December 2020 Marine Wildlife
Up to 380 sperm whales are living in deep waters off the Irish coast, a newly published study has found. This makes sperm whales “one of the most abundant great whale species” in these waters, expert Dr Simon Berrow says. …
NUI Galway Marine Ecologist & Kelp Expert Awarded by Irish Research Council
9th December 2020 Marine Wildlife
A leading specialist in the ecology of Irish kelp forests along the Atlantic coastline has been given an award by the Irish Research Council (IRC). NUI Galway marine ecologist Dr Kathryn Schoenrock has been given Early Career Researcher of the…
Efforts to Break Deadlock in Brexit Deal Continue - Kilmore Quay Outlines its Fears
6th December 2020 Fishing
As efforts continue to agree a final Brexit deal, two Wexford fishermen have outlined on RTÉ Radio Countrywide how devastating loss of access to British waters will be. British prime minister Boris Johnson met European Commission president Ursula von der…
Feeding Frenzy of Dolphins as Warm Water Anchovies Shoal off South Coast
4th December 2020 Marine Wildlife
Warm water anchovies and sprat are tempting pods of dolphins, fin whales and seabirds close to the south coast this week, with feeding frenzies reported in outer Cork harbour. An estimated 50 to 60 dolphins have been sighted by several…
