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Arranmore Lifeboat Assists Two Yachts In Poor Weather

5th July 2014
Arranmore Lifeboat Assists Two Yachts In Poor Weather

#RNLI - Arranmore RNLI in Donegal has assisted nine people after two yachts got into difficulty within five hours earlier this week.

At 12.30pm on Wednesday 2 July, the volunteer lifeboat crew responded to a call for assistance from a yacht which had got into difficulty west of Bloody Foreland.

The 37ft yacht, with seven crew members on board, was experiencing problems with its engine and sails.

On arrival, the lifeboat crew stood by. but with deteriorating weather conditions and a 3-4 metre swell, coxswain Anton Kavanagh decided to escort the yacht to safety until it was safe to secure a tow rope.

As both the lifeboat and the yacht reached the lee side of Arranmore at Beal a’ Chreesh, the crew managed to secure a tow and brought the vessel into Burtonport, where two of the yacht’s injured crew were then transferred to Letterkenny General Hospital by ambulance.

Meanwhile, at around 2.15pm another 10m yacht with two crew members on board got into difficulty eight miles northwest of Arranmore when the vessel’s boom broke.

With no immediate danger, the skipper of the yacht began to make his way towards Burtonport until the lifeboat could return from its first call and escort them into harbour as a safety precaution in what were rapidly deteriorating weather conditions.

Speaking after both rescues, Arranmore RNLI mechanic Philip McCauley said: "For four to six weeks we were quiet and now have responded to six calls in just under two weeks, but I suppose that’s the nature of the business we are in and the volunteer lifeboat crew will always be ready to go out whenever we get the call.

"We were pleased to assist both casualty vessels and their crews today; it is all part of the service."

The lifeboat station at Arranmore is experiencing one of its busiest summers with calls for assistance to help locate missing swimmers, rescue injured fishermen and carry out medical evacuations.

Elsewhere, the Clogherhead RNLI volunteer lifeboat crew launched yesterday morning (Friday 4 July) to the aid of a fishing vessel with engine failure located 3 miles north-east of Dunany Point in Co Louth.

The all-weather lifeboat was launched and underway by 7.25am. On arrival at the scene, coxswain Tomas Whelahan and his crew assessed the situation, and together with the skipper of the casualty vessel it was decided to tow the disabled vessel to Port Oriel.

There were no injuries and the boat was safely tied up at 10:24am.

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
MacDara Conroy

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MacDara Conroy

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MacDara Conroy is a contributor covering all things on the water, from boating and wildlife to science and business

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Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) in Ireland Information

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is a charity to save lives at sea in the waters of UK and Ireland. Funded principally by legacies and donations, the RNLI operates a fleet of lifeboats, crewed by volunteers, based at a range of coastal and inland waters stations. Working closely with UK and Ireland Coastguards, RNLI crews are available to launch at short notice to assist people and vessels in difficulties.

RNLI was founded in 1824 and is based in Poole, Dorset. The organisation raised €210m in funds in 2019, spending €200m on lifesaving activities and water safety education. RNLI also provides a beach lifeguard service in the UK and has recently developed an International drowning prevention strategy, partnering with other organisations and governments to make drowning prevention a global priority.

Irish Lifeboat Stations

There are 46 lifeboat stations on the island of Ireland, with an operational base in Swords, Co Dublin. Irish RNLI crews are tasked through a paging system instigated by the Irish Coast Guard which can task a range of rescue resources depending on the nature of the emergency.

Famous Irish Lifeboat Rescues

Irish Lifeboats have participated in many rescues, perhaps the most famous of which was the rescue of the crew of the Daunt Rock lightship off Cork Harbour by the Ballycotton lifeboat in 1936. Spending almost 50 hours at sea, the lifeboat stood by the drifting lightship until the proximity to the Daunt Rock forced the coxswain to get alongside and successfully rescue the lightship's crew.

32 Irish lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions, including the 15 crew of the Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) lifeboat which capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Palme on Christmas Eve 1895.

FAQs

While the number of callouts to lifeboat stations varies from year to year, Howth Lifeboat station has aggregated more 'shouts' in recent years than other stations, averaging just over 60 a year.

Stations with an offshore lifeboat have a full-time mechanic, while some have a full-time coxswain. However, most lifeboat crews are volunteers.

There are 46 lifeboat stations on the island of Ireland

32 Irish lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions, including the 15 crew of the Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) lifeboat which capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Palme on Christmas Eve 1895

In 2019, 8,941 lifeboat launches saved 342 lives across the RNLI fleet.

The Irish fleet is a mixture of inshore and all-weather (offshore) craft. The offshore lifeboats, which range from 17m to 12m in length are either moored afloat, launched down a slipway or are towed into the sea on a trailer and launched. The inshore boats are either rigid or non-rigid inflatables.

The Irish Coast Guard in the Republic of Ireland or the UK Coastguard in Northern Ireland task lifeboats when an emergency call is received, through any of the recognised systems. These include 999/112 phone calls, Mayday/PanPan calls on VHF, a signal from an emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) or distress signals.

The Irish Coast Guard is the government agency responsible for the response to, and co-ordination of, maritime accidents which require search and rescue operations. To carry out their task the Coast Guard calls on their own resources – Coast Guard units manned by volunteers and contracted helicopters, as well as "declared resources" - RNLI lifeboats and crews. While lifeboats conduct the operation, the coordination is provided by the Coast Guard.

A lifeboat coxswain (pronounced cox'n) is the skipper or master of the lifeboat.

RNLI Lifeboat crews are required to follow a particular development plan that covers a pre-agreed range of skills necessary to complete particular tasks. These skills and tasks form part of the competence-based training that is delivered both locally and at the RNLI's Lifeboat College in Poole, Dorset

 

While the RNLI is dependent on donations and legacies for funding, they also need volunteer crew and fund-raisers.

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