#RNLI - Lough Swilly RNLI rescued five people onboard a 50ft fishing boat yesterday evening (Sunday 2 December) after the vessel’s engine broke down in Co Donegal.

During what was a nine-hour callout in tough weather conditions, Portrush RNLI also launched to assist the stricken Mary Ellen.



Volunteer crew members from Lough Swilly had been attending a commemoration in Portsalon when they were requested to launch to the boat that had broken down some 10 miles further on, a mile-and-a -half from Fannad Lighthouse.



The all-weather Tyne class lifeboat arrived on scene at 3.15pm where the crew observed a steel crabber with five men onboard. The fishing boat was carrying a load of crab.



Weather conditions at the time were described as blowing gusts of between gale force 5 and 6 up the lough.



The crew pursued to establish a towline and commence the return journey to shore. After towing the vessel for a couple of hours into the dark, the tide began to turn, making the pull more difficult. A relief lifeboat from Lough Swilly and Portrush RNLI were requested to launch to assist.



Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 118 was also on scene in the event that the stricken vessel’s crew would need to be evacuated.



As the boat was being towed up the lough it lost all power and VHF was transferred from the lifeboat for communication.



When Portrush RNLI arrived on scene, the crew assisted with the tow while the Lough Swilly relief lifeboat stood by.



The stricken vessel’s mechanic managed to restart the engine during the tow and the vessel made its way into Rathmullan while the Lough Swilly lifeboat stood by in case it required further assistance.



John McCarter, Lough Swilly RNLI lifeboat operations manager, paid tribute to the lifeboat crew who arrived back at the station in the early hours of Monday morning.

"This was a long callout in difficult weather conditions and we are glad that we were able to assist this vessel and her crew in making it to shore safely,: he said. 

"This was a testament of the commitment, skill and selfless nature of our volunteers who are always willing to give their time and readily leave the comfort of their homes to face challenging conditions to help people who find themselves in difficulty at sea."

Joe Joyce from the lifeboat crew told BBC News that the nine-hour operation was "an unpleasant experience" but reported that "everybody was safe and well".

#RNLI - The Southern Star reports that Castletownbere RNLI in West Cork has a found a permanent home with the construction of a new station and pontoon.

Coxswain Brian O'Driscoll told the paper that the new station was "a long time coming".

The new €950,000 facility, replacing temporary accommodation that the lifeboat crews had occupied for 15 years, was build on reclaimed land provided by the Department of the Marine.

It comprises a two-storey lifeboat station and a pontoon from where the all-weather lifeboat can be launched for missions such as the fishing trawler grounded off Bere Island last month.

When completed, the building will also boast a crew changing room, training room, operations office and a charity shop.

The new station is scheduled to be open in the spring. The Southern Star has more on the story HERE.

#RNLI - The RNLI has warned the public in Donegal to keep on the lookout after reports that a man in a Santa Claus outfit was falsely claiming to be collecting for the lifeboat charity at the weekend.

A spokesperson for the RNLI told the Donegal Democrat that Gardaí in Bundoran were alerted to a man soliciting donations throughout the popular surf town on Saturday and Sunday.

The RNLI confirmed that it has no collections going at present, though its crew members and volunteers will soon be selling tickets to a fundraising dinner dance in February 2013.

RNLI Bundoran adds:

Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat are today (Monday 19th November) warning members of the public to be aware of a man dressed in a Santa suit claiming to be doing a collection on behalf of the organisation in the local area.

Members of the voluntary organisation were made aware of the character on Sunday evening after a member of the public said that he had called to his house in the West End of the seaside resort. The Gardai were immediately notified and an alert issued to the public via the lifeboat station's social media pages.

Volunteer Fundraiser for Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat, Cormac McGurren said 'this news is particularly disturbing in this day and age and we would encourage anybody who is approached by this man to refuse to hand over any money to him and report him immediately to the local Gardai. Members of the RNLI doing any collection will always be carrying official RNLI branded buckets and wearing official clothing. We will shortly commence selling tickets for our annual dinner dance at the start of February but I can confirm that we currently have no collections operating in the Bundoran & Ballyshannon area'

Lifeboat Press Officer Shane Smyth added 'the RNLI is a very respected and trusted organisation in the area and we are constantly relying on the generosity of locals to keep the service funded year round so that we can save lives at sea. An incident such as this is particularly unhelpful and we would ask people to be vigilant'

#RNLI - Neville Murphy of Dunmore East lifeboat station has been named the RNLI's Photographer of the Year for 2012.

The public came out in force on Facebook to vote for 'The Calm', his shot of heavy weather jackets hanging in the locker room at the Waterford station as the best out of 12 stunning images selected for the shortlist.

Murphy, a native of Skibbereen in Co Cork, has been on the all-weather lifeboat crew fat Dunmore East for 10 years since his job as a winch man with the Irish Coast Guard brought him to Waterford.

See a gallery with the winning photo and the runners up HERE.

#LIFEBOATS - The shortlist has been announced for the RNLI's annual Photographer of the Year competition - and for the first time in its seven-year history, the charity is inviting members of the public to vote for their favourite.

The shortlist is now online via the RNLI Facebook page, and voting remains open till 5pm on Monday 12 November.

Among the 12 shortlisted snapshots is this stark image from the locker room at the Dunmore East lifeboat station, photographed by volunteer lifeboat crew member Neville Murphy.

You can help celebrate the work of the RNLI's volunteers by voting for your favourite image before the deadline!

#LIFEBOATS - The volunteer lifeboat crew at Trearddur Bay in Anglesey, north Wales have received a kind donation and a thank-you card from the owner of Daisy, a cow recently rescued after falling from a cliff into the Irish Sea.

Danielle Bosustow, aged eight, was so touched that the crew had rescued her pet she put pen to paper to thank them. Her thank you card reads: "Thank you so much for your help rescuing my cow Daisy. I am so happy to see her again."

Along with the thank you card was a kind donation from Danielle’s grandfather, a local farmer who visited the station to show his gratitude to the RNLI.

The volunteer crew sprung into action on 22 October last, following reports that a cow had fallen from a cliff at Porthdafarch.

The lifeboat launched and with the help of the local farmer, Daisy was located and towed to safety using a bridle. She was taken to a bay close by where she could safely reach dry land.

Alf Pritchard, press officer for Trearddur Bay RNLI said: "We were shown some photographs which were taken after Daisy’s ordeal and it was good to see she is none the worse for her experience.

"It’s so nice when people come back to let you know that what you have done is appreciated. As a charity, the RNLI also very much appreciates the donation."

#LIFEBOATS - Volunteers with Douglas RNLI in the Isle of Man were presented with Diamond Jubilee medals from the Queen last week in recognition of their tireless service to saving lives in the Irish Sea.

And they couldn't have found a better place to present them than the Fort Anne, the former home of RNLI founder Sir William Hillary.

The medal recipients included lifeboat crew Neal Corran (Coxswain); Juan Howland (Emergency. Cox); Tony Radcliffe (Mechanic); Peter Cowin (Emergency Mechanic); Donald Bottomley Emergency Mechanic); Simon Bushe (Emergency Mechanic); Peter Washington (Emergency Mechanic); Emily Heaton; Richard Coase; J Noel Farrell; Mark Versluijs; Richard Forrest; Graeme Cushnie; and Nigel Smallwood; plus shore crew Mary Corran (LOM); Paul Cunningham (Head Launcher); Alex McBride (Winch Operator); Robert Corran MBE; John McCreadie; and Paul Zywicki.

#LIFEBOATS - Two teens were rescued from rocks off north Co Derry on Wednesday afternoon, the Belfast Telegraph reports.

The 13-year-old boys were stranded by the incoming tide in the East Promenade area of Portstewart.

PSNI officers called to the scene around 4.30pm managed to persuade one of the boys to cross to the shore, but the coastguard was tasked to lift the other boy from the rocks by the RNLI, according to UTV News.

Police inspector Mick Wood said that the incident "serves as a reminder to us that tides are extremely unpredictable".

#LIFEBOATS - Holyhead RNLI's all-weather lifeboat was dispatched late on Wednesday night (24 October) in response to a distress call from a yacht in the Irish Sea.

The volunteer crew received the request from Holyhead Coastguard after a mayday call from the skipper of a 24-yacht off the northwest coast of Anglesey in North Wales.

The man, who was the only person aboard the vessel, was on his way to the Canary Islands when he made the call for assistance. 

A helicopter from RAF Valley stood by the casualty until the lifeboat crew arrived to rescue him and tow his vessel back to Holyhead.


The yacht reportedly started to sink as it was towed into Holyhead harbour, but the lifeboat crew managed to secure the vessel alongside the boatyard slip.

#LIFEBOATS - The Larne Times reports that Larne RNLI will be involved in a major maritime exercise in Belfast Lough this Sunday 23 September.

As many as 365 people will take part in 'Exercise Diamond', which involves vessels from the UK coastguard along with lifeboats, helicopters, search and rescue co-ordinators and other emergency services.

The exercise is intended to "test the major incident plans for all the organisations that would be involved should a major maritime incident happen in Northern Ireland," said controller Steve Carson.