A family of six was rescued by the Howth RNLI, a volunteer crew, after their powerboat suffered engine failure and ended up on rocks at Lambay Island, off the north Dublin coast on Friday 3 May. The Dublin Coast Guard received a 999 call from the family, and the lifeboat was launched within 10 minutes with seven crew members on board. The Coast Guard helicopter, Rescue 116, and Skerries RNLI were also tasked to the emergency. Conditions were good with a westerly wind and slight swell.
Upon arrival, the crew observed the family had abandoned their boat and were stranded on the rocks, unable to safely make it ashore to the island. The lifeboat crew launched their daughter boat, the XP boat, which allows the crew to get in close to the rocks to assist.
Rescue 116 lowered a winchman to assess the situation and observed that all six individuals were in good health and wearing lifejackets. In consultation with the crew on the XP boat, and given the conditions on scene, it was decided that the safest approach was to winch the family on board the helicopter.
The family was winched one-by-one on board the helicopter and taken to Rescue 116’s base at Dublin Airport. The volunteer lifeboat crew from Skerries RNLI, on board their Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat, attempted to recover the powerboat but given the conditions and the location of the boat on rocks, it was unable to safely recover the boat.
Fred Connolly, the Coxswain of Howth RNLI, who was in command of the lifeboat, praised the family for doing the right thing by calling for help as soon as they got into difficulty. He also thanked the charity's supporters for their generosity which enables them to respond to emergencies like this. The incident comes at the start of the May bank holiday weekend, which traditionally sees the start of the summer busy season and an expected increase in demand for lifesaving services.
