Galway Harbour RNLI's volunteer crew responded to three separate calls for assistance in a single evening on Wednesday (09 August), demonstrating their readiness to deal with any situation that arises.
The first callout came at around 5.30 pm when the crew was requested by the Irish Coast Guard to launch following reports of a swimmer in difficulty off Salthill. The lifeboat, manned by crew members Dave Badger, Shane Austin, Gregg Cullen, and Brian Niland, was quickly launched and made its way to the area where the swimmer was last seen. The crew joined the search alongside the Irish Coast Guard Rescue 115 helicopter and a local cargo boat, which had been en route to Galway Docks. Fortunately, the swimmer was located and had made it safely to shore, and the search was stood down.
Shortly before 9 pm, the lifeboat was called out again, this time to assist a 30-foot fishing boat which had run aground near Cockle Rock, Renville. The lifeboat, manned by crew members Dave Badger, James Rattigan, David McGrath, and Ian Claxton, established a tow line and managed to get the fishing boat off the rocks before releasing it to return to harbour under its own steam.
While still in the vicinity of Renville, the lifeboat crew came to the assistance of a 21-foot half-decker fishing boat with one person on board which had lost steering and was unable to manoeuvre. The lifeboat towed the boat to its mooring buoy at Renville and brought the person safely ashore.
Dave Badger, who was Helm on board the lifeboat for all three rescues, praised the work of the shore crew who provided support back at the station, including Brian Niland, Mike Cummins, Seán McLoughlin, Aaron O’Reilly, and Seán Óg Leydon. He stressed the importance of having a means of calling for help and urged anyone who gets into difficulty or sees someone in difficulty in the water to dial 999 or 112 and ask for the Coast Guard.