A dog that had been reported missing for several hours in West Cork was rescued by the Courtmacsherry RNLI Lifeboat Station on Wednesday afternoon. The station received a call from two people on the shore who had spotted the dog in grave danger of being washed away on a sandbank off Burren Rock in Courtmacsherry Bay. The lifeboat pagers were immediately activated by Lifeboat Operations Manager Brian O'Dwyer.
Within minutes, the Rigid Inflatable Station House Boat was launched with Station Coxswains Ken Cashman and Mark John Gannon on board. The crewmembers responded quickly to the callout and were able to reach the dog, which was struggling in the strong currents. With the assistance of local man Dave Edwards in another small craft, the Lifeboat Crew were able to coax the dog towards the Lifeboat and finally crewman Mark John was able to catch the shocked dog and bring him to the safety of the Lifeboat.
The Lifeboat very quickly returned to the Lifeboat Slipway, where crew members assisted with the safe landing of dog Bonnie on dry land. Shortly after the rescue, the owners of Bonnie arrived as they had been looking for their precious Sheepdog for many hours, as he had been frightened by other dogs in the locality around mid-day. The relieved owners were reunited with Bonnie and were highly praised for the great work done so quickly by the lifeboat crew.
The Courtmacsherry Lifeboat Launch Authority and press officer Vincent O Donovan praised the two concerned ladies on the shore who alerted the authorities immediately when they spotted the dog in difficulty. He also gave credit to the fast response of the Lifeboat Crew, which ensured that Dog Bonnie was reached before being taken out to sea. Vincent added, “it was so great to see the joy on the owner's faces on being reunited with Bonnie and thus a very happy ending for all concerned”.
