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Displaying items by tag: South Down Coastguard Rescue

Four teenagers were rescued in Co Down last weekend when they were cut off by the tide, the News Letter reports.
The teens were caught up to their shoulders in water at Ardilea on Saturday evening when they were retrieved by a former volunteer coastguard who lives nearby.
The group were met at the shore by the South Down Coastguard Rescue Team and NI Ambulance Service paramedics and taken to hospital showing signs of hypothermia.
Meanwhile, on Friday night RNLI Bangor lifeboat rescued a young girl stranded on a rock near Groomsport after a call from a member of the public.
“With waves breaking around the knees of the frightened child it was paramount that she be brought ashore as quickly as possible," said a coastguard statement.
The girl was treated by waiting paramedics at the shore.

Four teenagers were rescued in Co Down last weekend when they were cut off by the tide, the News Letter reports.

The teens were caught up to their shoulders in water at Ardilea on Saturday evening when they were retrieved by a former volunteer coastguard who lives nearby.

The group were met at the shore by the South Down Coastguard Rescue Team and NI Ambulance Service paramedics and taken to hospital showing signs of hypothermia.

Meanwhile, on Friday night RNLI Bangor lifeboat rescued a young girl stranded on a rock near Groomsport after a call from a member of the public.

“With waves breaking around the knees of the frightened child it was paramount that she be brought ashore as quickly as possible," said a coastguard statement. 

The girl was treated by waiting paramedics at the shore.

Published in Rescue
Belfast coastguard responded to two requests assisting the Mourne Mountain Rescue Team on Saturday, BYM Marine & Maritime News reports.
The first followed reports of an injured walker in the Glen River Valley around 2pm. Helicopter assistance was stood down due to adverse weather conditions and the walker was stretchered off the mountain.
The second request came after 4pm, after a woman had fallen in a gully at the top of Slieve Begg. Irish Coast Guard rescue helicopter R116 was dispatched along with the South Down Coastguard Rescue team to locate the woman, who suffererd lower leg injuries and was airlifted to hospital in Newry.
Alan Pritchard, watch manager at the NI coastguard control centre at Bangor, urged the public to take care when out on coastal, river or mountain walks.
He also reminded people to dress sensibly for the weather and the terrain, and let others know of their whereabouts in case of distress.

Belfast coastguard responded to two requests assisting the Mourne Mountain Rescue Team on Saturday, BYM Marine & Maritime News reports.

The first followed reports of an injured walker in the Glen River Valley around 2pm. Helicopter assistance was stood down due to adverse weather conditions and the walker was stretchered off the mountain.

The second request came after 4pm, after a woman had fallen in a gully at the top of Slieve Begg. Irish Coast Guard rescue helicopter R116 was dispatched along with the South Down Coastguard Rescue team to locate the woman, who suffererd lower leg injuries and was airlifted to hospital in Newry.

Alan Pritchard, watch manager at the NI coastguard control centre at Bangor, urged the public to take care when out on coastal, river or mountain walks.

He also reminded people to dress sensibly for the weather and the terrain, and let others know of their whereabouts in case of distress.

Published in Coastguard

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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