Aran Islands RNLI on Inis Mór were called on to assist a local woman in need of medical attention on Wednesday evening, 22 June.

The woman was transferred safely aboard the lifeboat by the volunteer crew shortly after 6.15pm and the vessel, under coxswain John O’Donnell with a full crew, headed straight for Ros an Mhíl harbour where an ambulance was waiting.

Conditions at the time of launching were good with calm seas and clear visibility.

Speaking after the callout, O’Donnell said: “The volunteer crew responded to their pagers as soon as they went off so we were able to get the patient on her way to the hospital quickly. We would like to wish her a speedy recovery.

“As we head into the summer months, we would like to advise all beachgoers, and anyone heading to sea, to heed all safety advice and guidelines.”

Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys has today announced the awarding of a new €4.9 million air service contract for the Aran Islands.

The PSO contract — which comes into effect on Tuesday 7 June — will run for four years until 2026 and will ensure essential mainland connectivity for the island communities. It’s also expected to significantly boost tourism, the department adds.

In addition, the new contract ensures for the first time the provision of a direct service from the mainland to Inis Meáin and Inis Oírr, which will mean a faster service for those smaller islands.

The contract with Galway Aviation Services Limited, trading as Aer Arann Islands, follows extensive consultation with island stakeholders and a full procurement process.

The air route has most recently been operated by Aer Arann Islands on an interim contractual basis. This came after the operator announced the termination of its PSO arrangement in mid 2018, citing profitability concerns.

Announcing the decision today, Minister Humphreys said: “This contract gives certainly to the communities of Oileáin Árainn. It ensures they can continue to avail of a year round, reliable and affordable air service to and from Aerfort Chonamara.

“And for the first time, we will now have direct flights to Inis Meáin and Inis Oírr – two wonderful island communities that are so steeped in history, culture and folklore.

“This is a fantastic development for these island communities. And it also sends a huge signal out ahead of the summer tourism season.”

The contract will provide 68,274 PSO seats annually to the three islands and will operate from Aerfort Chonamara at Inverin, which was purchased by the State in 2019.

The contract will also see the introduction of a flexible scheduling scheme that will allow operator to better respond to local service demands, such as island festivals and events.

Ad-hoc and scheduled non-PSO flights will also be provided by the operator to meet any demand above the agreed PSO seating allocation, the department says.

ESB Networks says it is investigating the cause of a power blackout which affected almost 800 Aran islanders last week.

The southern Aran island of Inis Oírr was most severely affected, with no electricity for 26 hours – resulting in substantial losses to businesses and households relying on freezers.

The break occurred when a contractor hit an underground cable on Inis Oírr at about 2 pm last Tuesday. Retired island co-op manager Paddy Crowe says the driver had been asked to stop working by several residents before the cable was hit.

Power went down on all three islands, but ESB Networks says it was able to restore supplies to Inis Mór and Inis Meáin less than an hour after the fault occurred.

However, Inis Oírr had no supply restored until 4.30 pm on Wednesday, some 26 hours later. ESB Network crews arrived at 10.30 am that morning and repaired the cable in six hours.

“Third-party damage occurs on our network from time to time,” a spokesman for ESB Networks said.

“ The overriding priority is always one of safety, and thankfully we are not aware of injuries on this occasion,” the spokesman said.

“Third-party incidents are unfortunately a feature of any electricity network, and we’d take every opportunity to remind those in construction of these dangers,” the spokesman said.

“In this case, we are in the process of establishing the precise cause, ”the spokesman said. He said he understood work was being undertaken on behalf of Galway County Council in the area where the fault occurred, and this was being followed up locally.

ESB Networks said it wished to “apologise to all customers impacted, particularly those on Inis Oírr who were without power overnight, for the disruption caused”.

“The incident serves as a timely reminder to all those involved in construction to ‘dial before you dig’ on 1800 928 960,” the spokesman said.

Following their two callouts on Monday, the volunteer lifeboat crew of Aran Islands RNLI were tasked again on Tuesday evening (31 May) to a woman in need of medical attention.

The Severn class all-weather lifeboat launched under coxswain in charge Sean Curtin and a full crew and headed straight from Inis Mór for the neighbouring island of Inis Meáin.

Conditions at the time of launch were good, with a northwesterly Force 3-4 wind blowing.

Once at the pier in Inis Meáin, the patient was transferred safely aboard and under the supervision of the volunteer crew, the lifeboat headed straight for Ros an Mhíl harbour and the waiting ambulance.

Speaking after the callout, Curtin said: “The volunteer crew responded quickly to the call and we got the patient safely on her way to the medical attention needed. we would like to wish her a speedy recovery.”

Aran Islands RNLI’s volunteer crew were twice requested to launch on Monday (30 May).

The first callout came from the Irish Coast Guard at 2pm following a report of a small inflatable boat broken down off Doolin.

The volunteer crew under coxswain Sean Curtin were ready to launch the all-weather Severn class lifeboat when the call came through that the inflatable had made its way safely ashore.

The second callout came at 10.05pm when a man visiting the islands overnight was in need of medical assistance.

With the patient transferred safely aboard, the lifeboat launched under Curtin and a full crew and proceeded straight for Ros and Mhíl’s harbour and the waiting ambulance.

Speaking later, Curtin said: “We would like to wish the patient a speedy recovery. On both occasions the volunteer crew turned up without hesitation.”

The volunteer crew of Aran Islands RNLI on Inis Mór were requested on Tuesday evening (3 May) to launch their all-weather Severn class lifeboat to go to the aid of a patient on the neighbouring island of Inis Meáin.

Under coxswain John O'Donnell with a full crew onboard, the lifeboat launched for the medevac around 6pm in good weather conditions, with a southwesterly Force 3-4 wind, calm seas and good visibility.

Once at the pier in Inis Meáin, the patient was brought safely aboard the lifeboat by the crew and then transferred directly to Rossaveal Harbour and the waiting ambulance on the mainland.

Speaking after the callout, O’Donnell said: “This was a great response time from the volunteer crew who are always there to help anyone in need. We would like to wish the patient a speedy recovery.

“With the summer season fast approaching and the weather improving, we would advise anyone heading to the coast to heed all weather and safety advice.

“If you are planning a trip to sea, always wear a lifejacket or suitable floatation device for your activity, always carry a means of communication and let someone on the shore know where you are going and when you are due back.

“Should you get into difficulty, dial 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard.”

Companies throughout Galway have been promoted to more than 50 top tour operators and travel agents from Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland at a trade workshop held recently in Scandinavia.

Moycullen-based North & West Coast Links Golf Ireland and Aran Island Ferries (incl. Cliffs of Moher) took part along with 23 other businesses at Tourism Ireland’s 2022 Nordic trade workshop in Copenhagen, Denmark.

At the event, Irish businesses met with Nordic travel professionals, to encourage them to extend their Ireland offering, or to include Ireland for the first time in their brochures and programmes.

The key message was that Ireland is open for business again, and cannot wait to welcome back Nordic visitors.

Asides the Galway City Docks-Aran Islands (Inishmore) route, Afloat highlights those available from Rossaveel, Connemara and from Doolin in Co. Clare. At Doolin Pier there are other ferry operators also connecting to all three Aran Islands of Inishmore, Inishmean and Inisheer.

In addition running out of Doolin, coastal excursions head along to the spectacular Cliffs of Moher. 

More from Galway Daily on the tourist trade promotion.  

Doolin Ferry Company has set sail for the summer season, with their state-of-the-art ferries operating once again from Doolin Pier to the Aran Islands. Passengers can also opt to board a Cliffs of Moher cruise, or the Seafari experience, which was introduced in 2021.

With the popularity of the Aran Islands continuing to increase year on year, the family-run business now offers up to 20 sailings per day between Inis Óirr, Inis Mór and Inis Meáin.

As a top destination in the West of Ireland, the Aran Islands offer visitors the chance to step back in time and experience Irish culture in its truest and most traditional forms.

The Doolin Ferry Co. Seafari Launch

Doolin Ferry Co. holds the largest and fastest ferry fleet operating on the Wild Atlantic Way. Doolin Ferry Co’s one of a kind ‘Seafari’ experience takes place onboard an exclusive, private 10 seater rib.

The rib is designed to allow you unrivalled, close up views of the entire Clare Coast while sheltering you from the elements with an optional canopy if the need arises.

Doolin Ferry Co’s private charters allow you to dictate the itinerary so no two journeys onboard are ever the same.

Aran Islands RNLI had a busy Wednesday (20 April) with near back-to-back callouts for medical evaluations.

The first came just after 10am when the Irish Coast Guard asked the volunteer crew to launch for a local man on the island of Inis Mór that was in need of further medical attention.

With the patient transferred safely aboard the lifeboat at the Kilronan Harbour pontoon with the aid of the local fire crew, following all strict COVID-19 health and safety guidelines, the lifeboat launched under coxswain Sean Ginely and a full crew and headed straight for Rossaveal Harbour and the waiting ambulance.

Weather conditions at the time of launching were fair, with good visibility a slight sea swell with a south-to-southeast Force 4-6 wind blowing.

After returning to the pontoon at Inis Mór Harbour, washing down the lifeboat and refuelling, the next medevac call came at 2.15pm for a man on the neighbouring Island of Inis Meáin who was in need of medical attention.

The lifeboat launched under coxswain John Ginely and headed straight for Inis Meáin, where the patient was helped aboard by the volunteer crew and taken to waiting paramedics at Rossaveal.

Speaking after the callouts, Ginely said: “A busy day, but the crew responded without hesitation and we got both patients on their way as quickly as possible. We would like to wish them both a speedy recovery.

“As we head towards the summer months, could we remind everyone to always heed safety guidelines when visiting the coast.

“Never swim alone and if heading out on the water, wear a lifejacket, always bring means of communication with you and let someone ashore know when you are due back.”

Aran Islands RNLI’s volunteer crew were requested to launch just after midnight this morning (Wednesday 22 February) for a medevac for a patient on Inis Mór in need of further medical attention.

The Severn class lifeboat launched under coxswain John O'Donnell and a full crew onboard after pagers sounded at 12.10am.

Conditions at the time of launching were challenging with a strong southwest wind blowing and a three-metre sea swell.

With the patient safely aboard, the lifeboat headed straight for Rossaveal Harbour and the waiting ambulance crew to whom the patient was transferred.

Speaking after the callout, O’Donnell said: “Conditions were challenging, it was a dirty night, but the volunteer crew didn’t hesitate to respond to get the patient on their way to the medical attention needed. We wish them a speedy recovery.

“With the recent weather conditions, we would like to advise the public to follow all weather warnings and if going out to stay safe, stay well back from cliff edges and if you see someone in trouble call 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard.”