Marine Rescue News from Ireland

Last Sunday (4th October) Lough Neagh Rescue Lifeboat was tasked to two people stranded on Coney Island as their vessel had mechanical issues. Coney Island is owned by the National Trust and lies in the south-west corner of Lough Neagh…

Nightfall Rescue Difficulties Prompt Call For Kayakers To Carry Means Of Attracting Attention
5th October 2020 Kayaking
Kayakers have been urged to always carry some means of attracting attention in an emergency, such as flares or a torch. The call from the RNLI came after an incident off Somerset in the UK last month in which two…

The two Galway fishermen who rescued two paddleboarders in August have been honoured at a mayoral reception. Mayor of Galway Mike Cubbard described Patrick Oliver and his son Morgan as “Claddagh royalty” when he presented them with a framed presentation…

A young girl was rescued after she slipped and fell onto a coastal cliff in Co Down yesterday afternoon (Sunday 27 September). The major rescue operation took place at Ardglass after the 11-year-old slipped 20 feet down a steep bank…

Irish Coast Guard Saved Nearly 380 Lives In 2019, Says First Report On New National SAR Plan
22nd September 2020 Coastguard
The Irish Coast Guard saved 379 lives and assisted more than 3,500 people during the course of 2019. The figures are included in the first annual report on Ireland’s National Search and Rescue Plan, which was published yesterday (Monday 21…

Gardai Investigate Engine & GPS Theft from Corrib Mask Search & Rescue Craft
21st September 2020 Rescue
A west of Ireland community search and rescue service says it is “devastated” after the theft of up to 13,000 euro of equipment from its Zodiac rescue craft. As Afloat reported earlier, a Yamaha engine and GPS plotter were stolen…

Corrib Mask Search and Rescue is appealing for any information after its newly acquired RIB was stripped of its motor and GPS equipment. The Zodiac boat, which was stored in the Cong area, was targeted some time between Thursday (17…

Seven people were rescued from two vessels that ran aground on Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland on Saturday night (12 September). Lifeboats and shore crew were quickly tasked by Belfast Coastguard to the scene at Coney Island, where the vessels…

A busy week of callouts for Co Wexford’s Cahore Inshore Rescue Service began on Tuesday (8 September) with the rescue of a father and son who got into difficulty on an inflatable toy off Cahore Pier. As the Irish Mirror…

Four Rescued After Blaze Takes Shannon Cruiser On Jamestown Canal
9th September 2020 Inland Waterways
The Leitrim Observer reports on the rescue of four people from a Shannon cruiser that caught fire on Sunday 6 September. Firefighters were called to the indecent at noon on Sunday on the Jamestown Canal close to Albert Lock. Those…

Independent.ie reports that a major search and rescue operation was launched last night (Wednesday 26 August) for a sea angler on the Kerry coast. The man reportedly fell into the water while fishing at Kerry Head. His angling partner entered…

Portrush RNLI’s volunteers launched to the aid of a family cut off by the rising tide on cliffs yesterday evening, Saturday 22 August. Local lifeguards raised the alarm for the two adults and three young children who were trapped between…

A woman rescued after falling from a cliff at Mullaghmore Head yesterday afternoon (Thursday 13 August) was “very lucky that she was spotted”. The casualty was found unconscious at the bottom of the cliff on the Co Sligo headland by…

Praise For Emergency Services & Locals In Rescue Of Galway Bay Paddle Boarders
13th August 2020 Rescue
Minister of State Hildegarde Naughton has praised the coastguard, Garda and local volunteers for their quick response in the rescue of two missing paddle boarders in Galway Bay today, Thursday 13 August. As reported earlier on Afloat.ie, the two young…

HM Coastguard dealt with 340 individual incidents across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland on Saturday (8 August), representing its highest number of call-outs in a single day for well over four years. Packed coastlines and beaches kept coastguard personnel…

Coastguard units from Coleraine and Ballycastle were tasked to rescue a man in his 70s who had fallen in a cave close to the Giant’s Causeway on Friday (7 August). The casualty had sustained a knee injury and was being…