Six round-Britain rowers have been rescued by Red Bay RNLI amid “hugely challenging conditions” at sea off Northern Ireland.
As the Belfast Telegraph reports, the group were part of the GB Endurance team taking part in a coastal rowing challenge around Great Britain when they got into difficulty yesterday afternoon (Saturday 25 June).
The HM Coastguard helicopter from Prestwick in Scotland was also dispatched to the incident off Cushendall on the Co Antrim coast, while a tanker was diverted from its course to provide shelter for the rowers before their rescue by the Red Bay all-weather lifeboat.
In a statement on social media, the lifeboat station said: “Red Bay RNLI all weather lifeboat was launched this evening just after 5pm to reports of six people in difficulty on a small craft sixteen miles east of Cushendall.
“The lifeboat crew have now safely recovered all six people onboard the lifeboat in hugely challenging conditions,” it added.