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RNLI Lifeboat News From Ireland
Senator Grace O’Sullivan giving it welly for the RNLI in Dunmore East
#RNLI - Vital funds have been raised for the RNLI following the annual Dunmore East lifeboat 'Dash & Splash' and yellow welly throwing competition. The event, which took place at Councillor’s Strand in Dunmore East on Sunday 1 May, was…
Funds raised from the soapbox race will go towards the upkeep of the lifeboat and the ongoing training of the volunteer crew
#RNLI - The eagerly anticipated Bundoran RNLI Soapbox Race makes its return to Bundoran’s Astoria Road on Bank Holiday Sunday 5 June. Following last year’s cancellation of the event due to unfavourable weather conditions, the volunteer lifeboat crew are this…
Arklow RNLI's Ger Tigchlearr arrives to assist the stranded vintage vessel on May Day
#RNLI - Lifeboats from Arklow and Bangor were out on the water for separate callouts on May Day yesterday in what made for a busy weekend for the RNLI crews. In Arklow, RNLI lifeboat volunteers were alerted by pager around…
Portaferry Lifeboat Rescues Men From Yacht Stranded On Rocks
#RNLI - The volunteer lifeboat crew at Portaferry RNLI responded to a launch request from the coastguard yesterday morning (Saturday 30 April 2016) to assist two men on board a yacht stranded on rocks in Strangford Lough, Co Down. Portaferry's…
Answer the RNLI’s Mayday Call & Help Save Lives at Sea
People across Ireland are being encouraged to help raise vital funds for the RNLI as part of the charity’s national annual fundraising event, Mayday. The RNLI’s Mayday campaign runs through to the May Day bank holiday next Monday 2 May,…
The tractor to be rebuilt and Union Hall RNLI in action
A UK Agricultural Engineering lecturer is to travel to Union Hall, Cork this July to undertake a challenge to rebuild a Massey Ferguson tractor in 24-hours, with a little help from colleagues and friends. The tractor will then be raffled…
Portrush RNLI came to the aid of a man in need of emergency medical assistance on Saturday
Three volunteers from Portrush RNLI came to the aid of a man in need of emergency medical assistance on Saturday afternoon (23 April). Following a routine training exercise on the all-weather and inshore lifeboats, volunteer Karl O’Neill, who is also…
Ballyglass RNLI has rescued three fishermen off the Mayo coast this morning, following a 10 hour call out
Ballyglass RNLI has rescued three fishermen off the Mayo coast this morning, following a 10 hour call out. The volunteer lifeboat crew was requested to launch their all-weather lifeboat at 7.45pm yesterday evening (Sunday 24 April) after a member of…
Fethard RNLI's D-class lifeboat in action
#RNLI - Fethard RNLI launched their inshore lifeboat yesterday afternoon (Wednesday 20 April) following concerns that a person may have been missing on the Hook Peninsula in Co Wexford. The alarm was raised when a man did not return from…
Wexford RNLI rescued lone sailor on sandbank
Wexford RNLI rescued a lone sailor yesterday evening after his yacht hit a sandbank in heavy seas off Rosslare Point. Volunteer lifeboat crews from Wexford and Rosslare Harbour RNLI were launched at 6.35pm following reports that a 26ft yacht had…
Ballyglass RNLI Assist Fishermen on Broken Down Trawler
Ballyglass RNLI is assisting three fishermen this afternoon after their 40ft trawler got into difficulty off the Mayo coast. The volunteer crew was requested to launch their all-weather lifeboat shortly after 10 o’clock this morning following a report that a…
Clifden RNLI volunteers take their Skerries colleagues out on the water
#RNLI - Skerries RNLI's volunteer crew headed to the West of Ireland this month as they paid a visit to their colleagues in Clifden RNLI. Once a year the volunteers in Skerries undertake a team-building and fact-finding trip to other…
Portaferry RNLI's inshore lifeboat on exercise
#RNLI - Portaferry RNLI's volunteer lifeboat crew were called out yesterday afternoon (Sunday 17 April) to assist a 36ft angling vessel which had run into difficulty north of the South Rock Light Buoy near Portaferry, Co Down. The alarm was…
Since the new lifeboat went on service on Sligo Bay in November it has launched four times to call outs
At a special ceremony held today Sligo Bay RNLI officially named its new Atlantic 85 lifeboat, Sheila & Dennis Tongue, at its station in Rosses Point. Peter Killen, a member of the Irish Council of the RNLI, accepted the lifeboat…
Youghal RNLI's new Atlantic 85 lifeboat Gordon and Phil
#RNLI - A new Atlantic 85 class lifeboat has gone on service at Youghal RNLI. The lifeboat, which arrived at the east Cork lifeboat station on Monday evening (11 April), replaces Patricia Jennings, which has been used to save lives…
Larne RNLI's all-weather lifeboat at Bangor
#RNLI - The RNLI volunteer lifeboat crew from Larne carried out a training exercise with the Dublin-based Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 116 off Ballygally Head yesterday (Sunday 10 April). The Sikorsky S-92 initially visited Larne on 20 March last…

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.

© Afloat 2020