#RNLI - Skerries RNLI officially named its new Atlantic 85 lifeboat Louis Simson at a special ceremony held today (Saturday 7 September), as reported yesterday on Afloat.ie.

David Delamer, a member of the Irish Council of the RNLI, accepted the lifeboat and her launching carriage on behalf of the RNLI before handing her over into the care of Skerries Lifeboat Station.



He paid tribute to the donor, Charlotte Simson, who had generously funded the lifeboat through a gift left in her will. The legacy was 75 years old.



Simson, who hailed from Salem in India, funded the lifeboat which has been on service in Skerries since February, in memory of her husband Louis, from London.



"Mrs Simson made provision in her will for a trust fund that would provide various relatives with a modest income for life," Delamer explained. "She arranged that once the trust fund had come to an end, the remaining money should fund an RNLI lifeboat to be named in memory of her beloved husband. Now three quarters of a century on, Mrs Simson’s wish will be granted."



Leo Cody, a founding member of the Skerries RNLI inshore lifeboat station and a former deputy launching authority, then officially named the lifeboat during the ceremony.  



The new state-of-the-art Atlantic 85 lifeboat was introduced into the RNLI fleet in 2005. The lifeboat is 8.4 metres in length and weighs 1.8 tonnes.  Improvements on its predecessor include a faster top speed of 35 knots, radar, provision for a fourth crew member and more space for survivors. 



Since the new lifeboat went on service in Skerries, there have been 24 call-outs and 49 people have been brought to safety. 



Niall McGrotty, Skerries RNLI lifeboat operations manager, said the naming ceremony and service of dedication was a special occasion in the history of the Skerries lifeboat station, adding that the volunteer crew was grateful to Simson for her generous legacy which had funded the lifeboat. 



He added that the RNLI could not operate its lifeboats without the dedication of volunteer lifeboat crew.

"The crew in Skerries give 100% at all times. Their commitment and ongoing attendance for training both here and at the lifeboat college means that they are highly proficient in the operation of their lifeboat. 

"Further testament of the dedication of the crew is their knowledge that they may risk their own lives in the service of others. There is nothing greater that a person could offer and they deserve nothing less than the best lifeboat, equipment and training that money can buy." 



McGrotty went on to pay tribute to the vital support provided by the volunteers who support the crew.

"The lifeboat crew and I are only one part of this station. I must mention our operation team, supporters and fundraisers who volunteer their time and efforts and do so much for Skerries RNLI. These are people of all ages who give what time and money they can."



A crowd of well-wishers turned up to see the lifeboat officially named, with a bottle of champagne poured over the side of the boat before it launched at the end of the ceremony.



Among the guests were Des Frazer, president of the Skerries RNLI Lifeboat Management Group, who welcomed guests and opened proceedings; Leo Cody, who back in 1967 was appointed the honorary secretary of the Skerries fundraising branch and is a former deputy launching authority; and Brian Carty, a former crew member, deputy launching authority and chairman, who delivered the vote of thanks.



Father Richard Hyland, Reverend Anthony Kelly and Reverend David Nixon lead the Service of Dedication.

#RNLI - Bundoran RNLI's annual boat push will take place this Saturday 7 September as the volunteer crew once again embark on the challenge of raising funds for the lifeboat station, which is entering its 40th year of existence.

The boat push will start outside the ambulance base on the Donegal Road in Ballyshannon at noon and members of the lifeboat crew will have buckets with them on the route for people to make a donation. 

The route will take them through Ballyshannon, Finner and into Bundoran, finishing at the lifeboat station at Bundoran Pier, covering a distance of almost 10km in four to five hours.

The fundraising drive is just one of the events which helps to run Bundoran RNLI and keep the Atlantic 85 lifeboat William Henry Liddington maintained and ready to go at a moment’s notice. 

The volunteer crew counts on the generous support of the public to ensure that the RNLI can continue to provide all year search and rescue coverage and we hope to get lots of support on Saturday.

"The boat push has now become an annual fixture in Bundoran RNLI's fundraising calendar and is something the volunteer crew at the station look forward to each year," said Bundoran RNLI volunteer lifeboat press officer Shane Smyth.

"Not only does it give us a chance to raise much needed funds to continue to run this voluntary service, it also gives us a chance to meet our supporters from the area who continually donate to us despite the tough financial times we find ourselves in."

#RNLI - Douglas RNLI lifeboat on the Isle of Man was launched last night (4 September) at the request of Douglas Coastguard following the report of two kayakers stranded on the seaward side of Douglas Breakwater.

The RNLI all-weather lifeboat Sir William Hillary was launched under the command of volunteer deputy second coxswain Graeme Cushnie, to assist the coastguards by illuminating the scene from seaward, allowing coastguard rescue officers to negotiate their way down the sea defence wall and bring the kayakers to safety.

Both kayakers having been reported as safe and well the lifeboat was able to recover both kayaks from the Irish Sea to the visitors’ pontoon at the Battery Pier.

#RNLI - Wicklow RNLI carried out a medical evacuation of an unwell man from a survey vessel off the Wicklow coast in the early hours of yesterday morning (2 September).

The alarm was raised after the man was suspected to have been overcome with fumes on a survey vessel working near the Codling Buoy. The all-weather lifeboat launched at 2.45am and was alongside the survey vessel at 3.12am.

Conditions in the area at the time were described as moderate sea with wind southwest Force 3.

The casualty was transferred onto the lifeboat by stretcher and as the lifeboat returned to Wicklow, the crew administered first aid and monitored the casualty.

Due to the low tide in the harbour at the time, the casualty was transferred to the inshore lifeboat and landed ashore at 3.50am. He was met on arrival by a waiting ambulance crew who took him to hospital.

Speaking after the call-out, Wicklow RNLI lifeboat operations manager Des Davitt said: "This was a typically professional response by the volunteer crew of Wicklow lifeboat, who launched within seven minutes of being paged."


The all-weather lifeboat crew launched under coxswain Nick Keogh with mechanic Brendan Copeland, Ciaran Doyle, Carol Flahive, Paul Sillery, Graham Fitzgerald and Peter McCann on board. The inshore crew were helm Barry Spencer, Dave O'Leary and Brian Sinnott. 

#RNLI - Wicklow RNLI carried out a search of Wicklow Bay on Saturday night (31 August) after the Irish Coast Guard received a 999 call to report a distress flare sighting.

Both Wicklow's all-weather and inshore lifeboats were requested and launched just before 9pm and a search of the shoreline from the Six Mile Point and bay was conducted.

Conditions in the area at the time presented a calm sea state and there was good visibility.



After an extensive search of the area nothing was found. The lifeboats were stood down and returned to the lifeboat station shortly before 10pm.


Speaking after the call-out, Wicklow RNLI coxswain Nick Keogh said: "We made contact with some anglers on Kiloughter beach and spoke to the crew of a passing yacht in the search area and they hadn't seen anything."



The crew on the inshore lifeboat were helm Graham Fitzgerald, Dean Mulvihill and Peter McCann. The all-weather lifeboat crew were coxswain Nick Keogh, mechanic Tommy Murphy, Ciaran Doyle, Dave O'Leary, Carol Flahive and Brain Sinnott.

#RNLI - Portaferry RNLI had a busy start to the weekend with two call-outs last Friday (30 August).

The first call was received just before 3pm from a 5m Shetland open-top fishing vessel with two men and one child on board, who had lost power and run onto rocks near the entrance to Ardglass Harbour in Co Down.



The volunteer crew were on the water by 3.05pm and arrived on the scene 15 minutes later. Weather at the time was cloudy with good visibility and Force 4 northwest winds.



When the lifeboat crew arrived at the scene, the two men and the child had managed to climb onto the rocks to safety where they were met by a member of the coastguard.



The fishing vessel had lost power and by the time the crew could attempt to start the auxiliary engine the boat was washed onto the rocks. The lifeboat crew could do nothing to salvage the quickly sinking boat and remained at the scene until the two men and the child had been taken to safety.



The second call of the day was received at 9pm from a man and a teenager aboard a 27ft yacht that had lost engine power and was adrift close to the Fairway Buoy at the entrance to Strangford Lough in Co Down.



The volunteer crew launched at 9.07pm and were with the stricken yacht at 9.55pm after conducting a short search. The weather was fair with Force 4 to 5 northwest winds.



The lifeboat crew attached a line to the yacht and then proceeded to tow it nearly five miles to the safety of Portaferry Marina where they arrived at 11.20pm. The yacht was then securely moored in the marina and the two people on board safely put ashore.



Portaferry RNLI lifeboat operations manager Brian Bailie said: "It was certainly a busy start to the weekend for our volunteer crews and thankfully everyone was returned home safely.

"The skipper of the yacht which lost power at the mouth of Strangford Lough exercised good judgement calling for assistance when he did rather than attempting to sail back in what can be extremely tricky waters."

#RNLI - Achill Island RNLI was tasked to assist a young woman in distress off the cliffs of Old Head in Louisburgh, Co Mayo yesterday afternoon (28 August).

The volunteer lifeboat crew sped to the scene around 4pm yesterday after the woman, who had been diving from a cliff into the sea, was injured on entering the water and required urgent assistance.

As the lifeboat was en route, some of the woman’s friends managed to pull her from the water onto nearby rocks, below the cliff, to await help.



The lifeboat arrived shortly after and sent two crewmen ashore to administer first aid. Westport Coast Guard Unit and Rescue 115, the helicopter from Shannon, were also tasked to the scene.

The woman was taken on board the lifeboat and transferred to the helicopter, which took her to Castlebar General Hospital where her injuries were treated.



Lifeboat operations manager Tom Honeyman said: “This had been a very busy but fulfilling year for the volunteer lifeboat crew with this, the 20th shout so far in 2013.

"It is also another good example of the different wings of the emergency services working in tandem to affect a successful outcome.”

#RNLI - Portaferry RNLI responded to a mayday call about a converted fishing trawler at Ringhaddy Sound in Strangford Lough on Saturday night (24 August).

The alarm was raised by the crew of a nearby yacht who reported two men and two women on board an 80ft converted trawler, which had lost all power and was taking on water.

The Portaferry lifeboat crew launched before 8pm and were on the scene within 15 minutes. The sea at the time was calm with no wind and good visibility.



When the lifeboat arrived, one man and one woman had already transferred to the neighbouring yacht. The lifeboat crew then requested a salvage pump to help pump the water from the stricken boat.



A local vessel from Portaferry lent assistance by taking a pump to the lifeboat crew, and they met halfway between Portaferry and Ringhaddy.



With the assistance of the crew of the yacht who had called in the alert, the lifeboat manoeuvred the converted trawler onto the pontoons at Ringhaddy, and remained while the last of the water was pumped out and all four of its compliment were safely ashore.


Portaferry RNLI volunteer lifeboat operations manager Brian Bailie said: "We would like to pass on our thanks to everyone who helped bring this mayday call to a safe conclusion.


"The prompt actions of everyone involved resulted in a positive outcome and the volunteer RNLI crew for the second time in as many days helped to avert a potentially very serious situation."

Meanwhile, Donaghadee RNLI also launched on Saturday to go to the aid of a 17ft powerboat with four men on board that had run out of fuel off the Copeland Islands.

Belfast Coastguard received a call from the men shortly after 5pm and requested the lifeboat to launch.

The all-weather lifeboat crew, under second coxswain John Ashwood, located the vessel quickly and the decision was made to tow the casualty back to Donaghadee harbour. All returned safely shortly after 5.45pm.

#RNLI - Wexford RNLI rescued two people late on Monday night (26 August) after their yacht went aground on a sandbank on the way into Wexford Harbour.

The volunteer lifeboat crew responded to the report of the yacht which had grounded near Ravens Point around midnight on Monday.
 
Weather conditions at the time were good with a calm sea state and a north westerly force three wind.

But a fast-flowing tide of four knots meant that the inshore lifeboat and crew of the yacht had to work hard to refloat that boat.

Wexford RNLI lifeboat helm Peter Scallan commended the action of the yacht's crew, who he said were experienced sailors.

"The yacht's crew had taken all the correct precautions with the appropriate equipment on board to ensure their safety. They co-operated greatly with the lifeboat crew and as a result both they and their yacht were rescued." 
 


Lifeboat crew member Alan Keville went onboard the vessel to assist in the manoeuvre to get the yacht off the sandbank, which involved using the mast to get the vessel on its side as the keel was stuck hard in the sandbank. The yacht was under tow at 1.14am and back in Wexford at 2.30am.


Elsewhere, the Courtown lifeboat launched on Sunday afternoon (25 August) to a report of a swimmer missing off Ardamine beach.

The lifeboat crew, who were in the harbour at the time, launched within minutes and commenced a search of the area. Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 117 was also tasked to the scene, along with the Courtown coastguard unit.

After a thorough search of the area between Glasscarrig and Courtown pier, all rescue services were stood down as nothing was found. Courtown RNLI thanked all the members of public who helped and provided information during the call out.

The day before, the Wicklow RNLI inshore and all-weather lifeboats were launched after a member of the public reported seeing a small craft with two people drifting off Brittas Bay beach.

While the lifeboats were on route to Brittas Bay, they were requested to stand down and return to station by the coastguard as the boaters managed to make their own way ashore.

Speaking after the call-out, Wicklow RNLI lifeboat operations manager Des Davitt said: "While this turned out to be a false alarm with good intent, we are delighted that the public are being vigilant and contact the coastguard immediately when they suspect someone is in trouble on the water."

#RNLI - Some 46 people completed the 750m course on Lough Erne in the revived Castle Island Charity Swim recently - including three Enniskillen RNLI lifeboat crew in full kit!

As reported last month on Afloat.ie, the swim traditionally took place annually with the support of the Blake family, and Enniskillen RNLI hailed as a "great honour" the chance to bring back the annual event.


Apart from the action on the water on Sunday 11 August, the day featured was a family fun morning on shore with a bouncy castle, face painting and an ice cream stand.  



Lifeboat volunteer crewman Adrian Kelly said of the day: "I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who got involved on all levels. I really hope everyone enjoyed the event and that we can give it a go next year."