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Displaying items by tag: Refugees Rescued

#Navy - Refugees rescued by Irish Naval Service vessels involved in humanitarian operations fell in numbers from 7,029 in 2016 to 1,888 last year, after a change in policy to focus on security operations targeting smugglers and a drop in the number of people attempting to cross the Mediterranean sea.

As The Irish Times writes, in July 2017, the Government received approval to join the EU’s Operation Sophia, as part of the EUnavforMed (EU Naval Force in the Mediterranean). Previously the Irish navy’s search and rescue work at sea was carried out as part of a bilateral agreement with Italy called Operation Pontus.

Up to July, 1,187 people trying to cross the Mediterranean were rescued by the Irish navy vessel LÉ Eithne, according to figures on Operation Pontus from the Department of Defence, with 701 rescued over the second half of the year.

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Published in Navy

#Refugees - LÉ Eithne of the Irish Naval Service writes the Journal.ie has rescued approximately 183 people yesterday (25 June) in the Mediterranean Sea, just north of the Libyan capital Tripoli.

While on patrol at around 6 am, the LÉ Eithne located and rescued 113 refugees from an inflatable craft 40km north-west of Tripoli.

The crew on the ship then identified another craft in distress, and a second rescue operation was launched.

A further 70 people were rescued from this boat.

There are currently 183 on board the LÉ Eithne and the Irish vessel is enroute to assist in another rescue operation in the region.

Published in Navy

#RefugeeRescue- Following a request from the Italian Maritime Rescue Co-Ordination Centre, LÉ Eithne yesterday located and rescued a total of 135 migrants off Libya.

The migrants were found on an inflatable craft approx 83Km off the north-west coast of Tripoli.

The LÉ Eithne was subsequently appointed on scene coordinator by the Italian Maritime Rescue Co-Ordination to coordinate the rescue efforts of 3 NGO vessels dealing with 10 platforms in distress (PIDs).

The Naval Service flagship has now completed a second and third rescue of 211 migrants from two further inflatable craft, as well as taking 85 migrants on board from one of the NGO ships.

On board are 431 migrants  (346 rescued, 85 transferred from NGO vessel) and is proceeding to two further PIDs, while also coordinating the NGO ships.

The migrants on board received food water and medical treatment where required.

Published in Navy

Marine Wildlife Around Ireland One of the greatest memories of any day spent boating around the Irish coast is an encounter with marine wildlife.  It's a thrill for young and old to witness seabirds, seals, dolphins and whales right there in their own habitat. As boaters fortunate enough to have experienced it will testify even spotting a distant dorsal fin can be the highlight of any day afloat.  Was that a porpoise? Was it a whale? No matter how brief the glimpse it's a privilege to share the seas with Irish marine wildlife.

Thanks to the location of our beautiful little island, perched in the North Atlantic Ocean there appears to be no shortage of marine life to observe.

From whales to dolphins, seals, sharks and other ocean animals this page documents the most interesting accounts of marine wildlife around our shores. We're keen to receive your observations, your photos, links and youtube clips.

Boaters have a unique perspective and all those who go afloat, from inshore kayaking to offshore yacht racing that what they encounter can be of real value to specialist organisations such as the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) who compile a list of sightings and strandings. The IWDG knowledge base has increased over the past 21 years thanks in part at least to the observations of sailors, anglers, kayakers and boaters.

Thanks to the IWDG work we now know we share the seas with dozens of species who also call Ireland home. Here's the current list: Atlantic white-sided dolphin, beluga whale, blue whale, bottlenose dolphin, common dolphin, Cuvier's beaked whale, false killer whale, fin whale, Gervais' beaked whale, harbour porpoise, humpback whale, killer whale, minke whale, northern bottlenose whale, northern right whale, pilot whale, pygmy sperm whale, Risso's dolphin, sei whale, Sowerby's beaked whale, sperm whale, striped dolphin, True's beaked whale and white-beaked dolphin.

But as impressive as the species list is the IWDG believe there are still gaps in our knowledge. Next time you are out on the ocean waves keep a sharp look out!