RNLI Lifeboat News From Ireland

'Duck Race' For Helvick Head RNLI Hailed A Success

13th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - The Duck Race in aid of the Helvick Head RNLI lifeboat station on Saturday 11 April 11th was a "spectacular success", according to race co-ordinator RoseAnn Foley. As part of the Cois Cé celebrations during West Waterford Festival…

Bundoran Lifeboat Rescues Teen After Jet Ski Capsize

12th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - Bundoran RNLI rescued a teenager who fell from a capsized jet ski on Thursday afternoon (9 April). The volunteer crew was requested to launch their inshore lifeboat by Malin Head Coast Guard at 1.24pm following a report that…

Arranmore Lifeboat Saves Two After Fishing Boat Capsizes Off Donegal

12th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - Arranmore RNLI saved two fishermen on Wednesday afternoon (8 April) after their 10m boat capsized off the Donegal coast. A member of the public who was watching the fishing vessel from the shoreline raised the alarm at 2.50pm…

Courtmacsherry RNLI Respond To Third Call-Out In 12 hours

11th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#courtmacsherryRNLI – For many it was the end of the working week, but for members of the Courtmacsherry RNLI All weather Lifeboat Crew, yesterday evening was only the commencement of a very busy period of activity at sea, as it has…

Buncrana Welcomes New Shannon Class Lifeboat

10th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#shannonlifeboat – Crowds turned out in Buncrana today to welcome a brand new €2.4 million lifeboat to its new home on the Donegal coast. The new boat that featured in today's Afloat enewletter has been warmly anticipate on the north coast. The…

Photographing Every Lifeboat Station In Britain & Ireland With A Victorian Camera

10th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - Jack Lowe has loved the RNLI since he was a little boy. He became a member of Storm Force, the charity’s club for children, at the age of eight – about the same time he picked up his…

Howth RNLI Announces Retirement of Lifeboat Operations Manager

10th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#rnli – Howth RNLI has announced its Lifeboat Operations Manager (LOM), Rupert Jeffares will be retiring from his post after over 50 years of tireless dedication to Howth RNLI. Mr. Jeffares has contributed to saving hundreds of lives at sea,…

Bundoran Lifeboat Launches To Surfer In Difficulty

7th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#Lifeboats - Yesterday evening (Monday 6 April), the volunteer crew of Bundoran RNLI were requested by the Irish Coast Guard at Malin Head to launch to a surfer in difficulty. Shortly after 8pm, a passer-by noticed a female surfer in…

Kilkeel Lifeboat Manager Roy Teggarty Retires

5th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - Roy Teggarty has retired as lifeboat operations manager at Kilkeel RNLI in Co Down. At a social evening in the local British Legion on Friday 27 March, Teggarty was pleased to greet fellow Kilkeel RNLI colleagues as well…

RNLI Lifeboat Launches for Yachtsman 'Lost' on Lough Derg

5th April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#rnli – Lough Derg RNLI Lifeboat launched following a transmission on Channel 16 from a yachtsman reporting himself lost on Lough Derg. At 8.15pm on Saturday evening, March 4, Lough Derg RNLI Lifeboat launched following a request by Valentia Coast…

Ireland's First Permanent Inland Lifeboat Station Now Complete At Carrybridge

2nd April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - The RNLI’s first permanent inland lifeboat station is now complete and fully operational on Upper Lough Erne in Co Fermanagh. After been housed in temporary accommodation for 13 years, Enniskilllen RNLI volunteers were handed the keys to their…

Fethard-On-Sea Lifeboat Launches To Man Who Tried To Rescue Dog From Gully

2nd April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - Fethard-on-Sea RNLI were diverted from a planned exercise last weekend following a report of a young man in extreme difficulty after he launched a kayak near Baginbun Head to rescue his dog from a steep gully. The young…

First RNLI Shannon Class Lifeboat in Ireland to Arrive into Lough Swilly, County Donegal

2nd April 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#rnli – Lifeboat crew from Lough Swilly RNLI are currently onboard the station's new €2.4 million Shannon class lifeboat and en route to its permanent home in Donegal from the charity's headquarters in Poole. As Afloat reported earlier, he new…

John McColgan Photographic Exhibition in Aid of Howth RNLI Opened by Gay Byrne

31st March 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#rnli – On Monday broadcaster Gay Byrne officially opened the Howth Horizons exhibition of photographs taken by John McColgan, the multi-award winning director and producer of Riverdance. The exhibition runs until 20th April at The House restaurant in Howth. All…

Red Bay Lifeboat Launches To Aid Lone Yachtsman In Poor Weather

30th March 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - Red Bay RNLI's lifeboat crew went to the aid of a lone yachtsman some 1.5 miles off Glenarm in Co Antrim yesterday evening (Sunday 29 March). The volunteer lifeboat crew launched at 6.10pm to assist the 25-foot yacht, which was…

Wicklow Lifeboat Launches To Rescue Kitesurfer

30th March 2015 RNLI Lifeboats

#RNLI - Wicklow RNLI's all-weather lifeboat launched at 5.10pm on Saturday (28 March) to assist a kitesurfer in difficulty off Potters Point, south of Wicklow Head. The kitesurfer was unable to get ashore after leaving the beach at Jack’s Hole.…

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Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) in Ireland Information

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is a charity to save lives at sea in the waters of UK and Ireland. Funded principally by legacies and donations, the RNLI operates a fleet of lifeboats, crewed by volunteers, based at a range of coastal and inland waters stations. Working closely with UK and Ireland Coastguards, RNLI crews are available to launch at short notice to assist people and vessels in difficulties.

RNLI was founded in 1824 and is based in Poole, Dorset. The organisation raised €210m in funds in 2019, spending €200m on lifesaving activities and water safety education. RNLI also provides a beach lifeguard service in the UK and has recently developed an International drowning prevention strategy, partnering with other organisations and governments to make drowning prevention a global priority.

Famous Irish Lifeboat Rescues

Irish Lifeboats have participated in many rescues, perhaps the most famous of which was the rescue of the crew of the Daunt Rock lightship off Cork Harbour by the Ballycotton lifeboat in 1936. Spending almost 50 hours at sea, the lifeboat stood by the drifting lightship until the proximity to the Daunt Rock forced the coxswain to get alongside and successfully rescue the lightship's crew.

32 Irish lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions, including the 15 crew of the Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) lifeboat which capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Palme on Christmas Eve 1895.

FAQs

Which is Ireland's busiest lifeboat station?

While the number of callouts to lifeboat stations varies from year to year, Howth Lifeboat station has aggregated more 'shouts' in recent years than other stations, averaging just over 60 a year.

Do the RNLI get paid?

Stations with an offshore lifeboat have a full-time mechanic, while some have a full-time coxswain. However, most lifeboat crews are volunteers.

How many RNLI Lifeboat stations in Ireland?

There are 46 lifeboat stations on the island of Ireland

How many lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions?

How many people are rescued by the RNLI?

In 2019, 8,941 lifeboat launches saved 342 lives across the RNLI fleet.

What type of boats does the RNLI have?

The Irish fleet is a mixture of inshore and all-weather (offshore) craft. The offshore lifeboats, which range from 17m to 12m in length are either moored afloat, launched down a slipway or are towed into the sea on a trailer and launched. The inshore boats are either rigid or non-rigid inflatables.

How are lifeboats called out?

The Irish Coast Guard in the Republic of Ireland or the UK Coastguard in Northern Ireland task lifeboats when an emergency call is received, through any of the recognised systems. These include 999/112 phone calls, Mayday/PanPan calls on VHF, a signal from an emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) or distress signals.

What is the relationship between the Irish Coast Guard and the RNLI in Ireland?

The Irish Coast Guard is the government agency responsible for the response to, and co-ordination of, maritime accidents which require search and rescue operations. To carry out their task the Coast Guard calls on their own resources – Coast Guard units manned by volunteers and contracted helicopters, as well as "declared resources" - RNLI lifeboats and crews. While lifeboats conduct the operation, the coordination is provided by the Coast Guard.

What is a coxswain?

A lifeboat coxswain (pronounced cox'n) is the skipper or master of the lifeboat.

What training do RNLI lifeboat crews get?

RNLI Lifeboat crews are required to follow a particular development plan that covers a pre-agreed range of skills necessary to complete particular tasks. These skills and tasks form part of the competence-based training that is delivered both locally and at the RNLI's Lifeboat College in Poole, Dorset