#RNLI - Portrush RNLI assisted the crew members of a yacht that lost its mast while out sailing on the River Bann this morning.

The volunteer lifeboat crew were alerted by an observer and launched both the all-weather lifeboat and the inshore lifeboat just before 10am today Tuesday 6 August. The inshore lifeboat was later stood down.



The yacht in question had four people on board and had lost her mast and rigging due to an earlier collision with a navigation marker.

Portrush RNLI came alongside the yacht and passed equipment to her crew to help to stabilise the rigging.


Once this was done, a rope was successfully passed to the yacht to start the tow. This exercise was complicated because the yacht was stuck on the bottom of the river by the rigging and the keel, and the tide was falling fast.

Added to this, the river flow was quite strong, thus making conditions slightly more difficult.

However, due to the skill of the lifeboat crew and the fact that the winds were light, the tow rope was successfully attached and a long slow tow was started.



Mark Mitchell, deputy 2nd cox, said: "This was a tricky operation as the rigging and the sail from the yacht were still in the water, which made progress slow. We had to move at a reduced pace to ensure the tow would be successful. We had to move slowly into deeper water and adjust the tow accordingly."



Lifeboat operations manager Robin Cardwell added: "All the training and experience of our crew was required to ensure a successful outcome of this service. They judged conditions well and made sure the crew and yacht was brought to harbour."



The lifeboat crew towed the yacht to Coleraine Harbour and returned to base.

#RNLI - Youghal RNLI launched yesterday afternoon (5 August) to a report of an object in the water off Redbarn Strand at Youghal - and picked up a stranded kayaker instead.

The volunteer crew was requested to launch their inshore lifeboat at 2.30pm when a member of the public raised the alarm after spotting something in the water.



The lifeboat, helmed by David Slattery with crew members Martin Morris and Joe Moore on board, located the object minutes after launch. It turned out to be a large human hamster ball that apparently had blown into the water from the strand.



While the crew were taking the ball on board, they spotted a lone male kayaker 50 yards away who had lost his paddle and proceeded to his aid.

The kayaker told the lifeboat crew that he had lost his paddle and was drifting for some time. He was very tired after attempting to paddle with his hands and did not have a spare paddle or any form of communication or flares.



Weather conditions at the time were sunny with a moderate to fresh northerly breeze and a one-metre swell.



The lifeboat took the man and his kayak on board and proceeded back to the Youghal lifeboat station, where they checked if he was in need of any medical attention.


Youghal RNLI lifeboat press officer Noreen Varney said: “It was a very fortunate set of circumstances for the kayaker to be rescued from what originally was a non-related incident.”

#RNLI - Two men were rescued in the early hours of this morning (Sunday 4 August) after their small boat got into difficulty off the pier at Courtmacsherry Harbour in West Cork.

Fourteen crew of the Courtmacsherry RNLI all-weather lifeboat station responded immediately to the Mayday call at 4.25am and the two casualties were pulled ashore from the water after the small boat which they were in capsized.


Following an 999 call from two local people, the Irish Coast Guard immediately tasked the Courtmacsherry lifeboat and the Shannon-based coastguard rescue helicopter.

Within minutes the small craft had overturned and the two young men on board were thrown into the water. Without delay, crew members and helpers succeeded in getting a lifebelt from the pierced to one of the casualties, while the other man was helped ashore at the pierhead.


The two men, both from Cork City, were said to be "shocked and traumatised" by their ordeal after they were brought back to the lifeboat station in Courtmacsherry to be assessed by station crew and officers. Conditions at sea this morning were good with little wind.

Courtmacsherry RNLI lifeboat operations manager Brian O'Dwyer said the men "had a very lucky escape in the early hours of this morning" and praised the fast response of the lifeboat crew members, local helpers and emergency services for "certainly averting a potential life threatening situation".

#RNLI - The Crosshaven RNLI volunteer crew were paged in the early hours of Saturday 3 August to reports of a missing person separated from friends at Salve Marina near Cork Harbour.

The lifeboat, with Alan Venner, Kieran Coniry and Denis Cronin on board, was launched along with Crosshaven coastguard and the Irish Coast Guard's Rescue 115 helicopter, to made multiple searches of all the marinas and the Owenboy River, until reports were received from Gardaí that the missing person had been located at his home address.

The lifeboat was then stood down and returned to station, refuelled, washed, and ready for service at 5am.

Commenting on the service, lifeboat station manager Alan Barton said: "Thankfully, this did not end in a tragedy. The friends of the missing person took the correct course of action by calling us – a false alarm with good intent."

#RNLI - Two red flare sighting in recent days prompted launches by the Baltimore RNLI volunteer lifeboat crew - the first from the new station at Bullpoint.

On Saturday last (27 July) a red flare was reported after 8pm in the area of Inisbeg on the Ilen River, near Skibbereen in West Cork.

Helm Micheal Cottrell and his crew carried out a search as far upriver as the rowing club, making inquiries with vessels on the river. With no trouble found, the search was stood down and the lifeboat returned to the station at 9.10pm.
 


Then on Tuesday night (30 July) the alarm was raised when a member of the public reported sighting a red flare to the southwest of Tragumna Beach just before 11pm.

The all-weather lifeboat proceeded to Tragumna Bay, where a local fishing boat had already begun a search. Coxswain Kieran Cotter spoke by mobile phone with the observer of the flare, and the lifeboat searched west along the shoreline towards Tragumna Beach in response to the observer's directions.

By midnight nothing had been found, and the search was stood down as all indications were that this was most likely a firework or chinese lantern launched from the headland southwest of Tragumna.
 


Baltimore RNLI lifeboat operations manager Tom Bushe commented that he was "delighted with how the new carriage launching system worked" and thanked the volunteer crew and shore crew for all their hard work in learning new procedures.

Furthermore he advised that if people are setting off fireworks or releasing chinese lanterns in coastal areas to notify the coastguard of their intent.
 


Volunteer crew on board the inshore lifeboat were helm Micheal Cottrell, Tadhg Collins and Connor Dempsey, with shore crew comprising Jerry Smith, Rianne Smith and Seamus O'Driscoll. Volunteer RNLI crew on board the all-weather lifeboat were coxswain Kieran Cotter, mechanic Cathal Cottrell, Jerry Smith, Sean McCarthy, Tadhg Collins, Shane McSweeeny and Eoin Ryan.

#RNLI - Enniskillen RNLI will host the revived Castle Island charity swim and family fun morning in Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh on Sunday 11 August.

The swim traditionally took place each year with the support of the Blake family.

And Enniskillen RNLI have hailed as a "great honour" the opportunity for its local volunteer crew to revive the swim in association with sponsors Blakes the Hollow, Western Cars and The Print Factory.



The 750m swim on Lough Erne is open to swimmers of all ages either individually or in small groups such as youth clubs, sports clubs or simply groups of friends.

Enniskillen RNLI says the emphasis for this swim is for everyone to have fun and for that reason, if required, novice swimmers may complete the swim in a well-fitted lifejacket or buoyancy aid but must be confident that they can complete the distance. 



Lifeboat crew not swimming themselves will also be present on the day to provide safety cover for the event.



Registration for the swim will take place at 12 noon on the day, followed by a short safety briefing. Sponsorship forms are available by email or can be collected at The Wig & Crown, Blakes the Hollow and Western Cars. For further information contact Adrian at 07974 730456.

In other news, RTÉ Radio 1’s The Business will broadcast live from Bundoran RNLI lifeboat station this Saturday morning 3 August.

The focus of the show will be on the business of Bundoran being a seaside resort - a reputation the Donegal town has enjoyed for more than two centuries. 

Speaking ahead of his visit, programme host George Lee said: "I'm really looking forward to broadcasting from Bundoran, particularly on a bank holiday weekend. I'm hoping to experience lots of surfing, slots machines and ice-creams.

"On the show we'll be looking back at the heyday of the dancehalls, we'll be joined by Bundoran regular Ramona Nicholas from Dragon's Den, we'll be speaking to two men making money from oil exploration and lots, lots more."


The Business is broadcast Saturday morning at 10am on RTÉ Radio 1.

#RNLI - Kilmore Quay RNLI has assisted a fisherman after his boat got into difficulty off the Wexford coast, while Wicklow RNLI attended to a fishing boat in trouble south of Wicklow Harbour.

The Kilmore Quay all-weather lifeboat was requested to launch at 9.04am on Monday morning (29 July) to go to the assistance of a local lobster boat with one person on board,

The fishing boat had fouled its propeller while hauling pots a mile to the south-east of the Little Saltee Island.



Weather conditions at the time were blowing a light southerly breeze and there was good visibility.

When the lifeboat arrived on scene, a tow was set up and the vessel was brought safely to the harbour at Kilmore Quay.

Shortly afterwards, Wicklow RNLI launched at 9.30am in response to a call for assistance from a fishing vessel in difficulties six miles south of Wicklow Harbour.

The vessel with three crew was fishing north of Brittas Bay beach when a rope got fouled in the propeller and she lost steering. The skipper contacted the coastguard for assistance.



Wicklow town's lifeboat, under the command of coxswain Nick Keogh, located the vessel drifting close to the Wolf Rock 20 minutes after launching.

A towline was quickly established and the stricken vessel was towed back to Wicklow Harbour, where she was secured safely alongside the East Pier at 10.40am.



The crew on the call out were coxswain Nick Keogh, mechanic Brendan Copeland, Tommy McAulay, Kevin Rahill, Carol Flahive, Paul Sillery and Graham Fitzgerald.

#RNLI - A drifting yacht with three people on board was towed to safety by Wicklow RNLI on Friday morning (26 July). SEE VIDEO BELOW

The volunteer lifeboat crew was alerted by pager shortly before 8am after the Irish Coast Guard received a call for assistance from a yacht in difficulties off Wicklow Head.



The lifeboat, under the command of coxswain Nick Keogh, was alongside the yacht 20 minutes after launching.

Crew member Ciaran Doyle was put on board the boat to assist with establishing a tow line. He remained onboard the yacht as it was towed into Wicklow Harbour.

The boat with the three people was secured safely alongside the east pier at 9.20am.



Weather conditions in the area at the time were described as wind south west force two, and the sea state was calm.



Speaking after the incident, Keogh said: "We located the 14-metre yacht drifting five miles south east of Wicklow Head. The yacht had lost engine power and with the light winds they were unable to make any headway." 



The crew on the call out were coxswain Nick Keogh, mechanic Brendan Copeland, Ciaran Doyle, Dave O'Leary, Carol Flahive, Tommy Murphy, Alan Goucher and Peter McCann.

#RNLI - The volunteer lifeboat crew of the Courtown lifeboat launched last Wednesday evening (24 July) to a report of a small fishing boat that was overdue on its time to return to Cahore Pier.

The Courtown RNLI lifeboat, Cahore Inshore Rescue, the Rosslare RNLI lifeboat and the Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 117 were all tasked at 7pm to search the area of Cahore on the north Wexford coast, where the boat was last reported fishing.

After searching for some time, the small fishing boat made contact to say they had beached their boat some eight miles north of Cahore Pier at Kilgorman Beach. Both men were safe and well and all rescue services were stood down.


The Courtown lifeboat has since urged all boat users carry a proper means of communication - ideally a VHF radio - and to keep friends and family up to date on their location, especially if they decide to change their location.

That same evening, Rosslare Harbour RNLI was involved in a search for two fishermen after they reported getting into difficulty off the Wexford coast.

The volunteer crew launched their all-weather lifeboat at 7.30pm to assist in the search following a request from the coastguard to attend a fishing boat that was reported to be taking on water.



Weather conditions at the time were described as good, with a southerly force three wind.



The fishing boat had set out from Cahore Harbour before getting into trouble. The two crew raised the alarm using a mobile telephone.



Rosslare Harbour RNLI and lifeboats from Courtown RNLI and Cahore, along with the Rescue 117 helicopter, joined in the search.  



At 7.50pm, Rescue 117 located the two fishermen safe and well and their vessel on the beach at Glasgorman, near Cahore.



Speaking after the call-out, Rosslare Harbour RNLI deputy volunteer lifeboat press officer Jamie Ryan said: "The emergency services responded swiftly and were on scene quickly.

"The two fishermen did the right thing by raising the alarm when they got into difficulty and thankfully they were both found safely ashore."

#TallShips - Four RNLI lifeboats were involved in the rescue of 30 crew from the tall ship Astrid, which sank off the Cork coast earlier today (Wednesday 24 July).

The 42m Dutch training vessel reportedly hit rocks inside the Sovereign Islands at Ballymacus Point, near Kinsale.

All on board were brought to safety when the Kinsale lifeboat transferred the casualties from the sinking ship onto the Courtmacsherry RNLI lifeboat and a local vessel. They were then taken to Kinsale.

Both Kinsale and Courtmacsherry RNLI lifeboats were called out at 12 noon today to go to the immediate aid of the sail training vessel that had got into difficulties on the western entrance to Kinsale Harbour in Cork.

Ballycotton and Crosshaven RNLI were also launched, though the Kinsale RNLI lifeboat was first on scene. There was a 2m swell and winds were force five to six.

The training vessel had lost power and was apparently driven on to rocks by a strong southerly wind at the western entrance to Kinsale Harbour. The grounded vessel was taking on water and a crewmember from Kinsale RNLI was put onboard.

Eighteen of the casualties were taken off the Astrid by Kinsale RNLI lifeboat and transferred to Courtmacsherry lifeboa, before being brought to safety. The remaining 12 were put onto a liferaft deployed by the Astrid’s crew, which was towed to safety by the Kinsale lifeboat and picked up by a local vessel.

The people on board the liferaft were then taken to Kinsale harbour and assessed by medical teams.

Irish Coast Guard helicopters from Waterford and Shannon were also on scene along with ambulances and medical crews from Cork.

Speaking about the call-out, Courtmacsherry RNLI coxswain Sean O’Farrell said: “Everyone was very fortunate. I want to praise the quick thinking of the skipper and the crew from the Astrid. They kept calm and did everything we asked them to do. We were able to get them to safety quickly and a major tragedy was averted. To be able to recover 30 people safely was a great day for everyone involved.”

Meanwhile, the Irish Sailing Association has issued the following media statement on behalf of the tall ship Astrid:

Tall Ship Astrid was on a voyage from Southampton to Cherbourg calling in to Kinsale. On board were 23 trainees from France, Ireland, the Netherlands, UK and Spain. The crew were from Belgium and the captain, Pieter de Kam was from the Netherlands.

As the Astrid was leaving Oysterhaven, as part of The Gathering Cruise parade of sail to Kinsale, the vessel experienced engine failure. They notified a nearby RIB which was being helmed by Irish Sailing Association (ISA) CEO Harry Hermon.

The RIB attempted to take a line from Astrid. However, due to the onshore winds and swell this was not possible. Captain de Kam issued a May Day.

The ISA RIB and the yachts in The Gathering Cruise flotilla stood by until the RNLI arrived. There was a safe rescue of all 30 crew who were brought to Kinsale on board the yacht Spirit of Oysterhaven and the lifeboat. All crew were brought to Kinsale Yacht Club where they were provided with showers, food and dry clothing. They were all medically checked and are in good health.

Sail Training Ireland and Kinsale Yacht Club are working together to make arrangements for accommodation and for returning the crew to their homes.

Commenting on the rescue, Captain Pieter de Kam of the Tall Ship Astrid stated: “I would like to thank the lifeboat and the coastguard for the safe rescue of all my crew. We very much appreciate their outstanding work.”

Harry Hermon, CEO of the Irish Sailing Association, commented: “It is thanks to the rescue services that all crew were rescued quickly and safely without injury. I would also like to thank all the sailors from the Gathering Cruise who stood by Astrid providing support to the crew.

"Kinsale Yacht Club has also been fantastic providing food and clothing and helping Sail Training Ireland find accommodation for all the crew”.